When sequestration hits again—as Air Combat Command chief Gen. Mike Hostage believes it will—ACC will have to deal with it differently than it did before. During the summer of 2013, some squadrons were grounded and others flew at bare-bones rates,...

At the height of sequestration in 2013, Air Combat Command had “eight combat-ready airplanes” in the continental US “that weren’t already on rotation or preparing to go,” said ACC chief Gen. Mike Hostage. Speaking at an AFA-sponsored, Air Force event...

The Air Force is working on a capability to succeed the F-22, but it is still defining what it might be. Speaking during an AFA-sponsored, Air Force breakfast event in Arlington, Va., ACC chief Gen. Mike Hostage said he “told...

Air National Guard officials are urging Congress to fund an avionics upgrade for their C-130Hs, warning that without the improvements all of those airlifters would be essentially grounded in six years. The Adjutant Generals of the 18 states with Air...

Air Combat Command boss Gen. Michael Hostage lists a replacement for the E-8 JSTARS battle management aircraft among his top three or four priorities. “It’s important to me,” said Hostage on Tuesday during an AFA-sponsored, Air Force breakfast event in...

Air Combat Command boss Gen. Michael Hostage repeatedly expressed frustration with the paralysis of post-sequestration force planning during an AFA-sponsored, Air Force breakfast event in Arlington, Va., on Tuesday. “Politics is not letting us make the hard decisions,” Hostage said,...

Although the F-35 has the capability to jam enemy radars, the commander of Air Combat Command does not want the fifth generation fighter doing broad electronic jamming during a strike into contested air space. With its low radar signature, the...

The Air Force works hard to keep tabs on the capabilities of competitors such as China, said Air Combat Command boss Gen. Michael Hostage. Speaking during an AFA-sponsored, Air Force event in Arlington, Va., Hostage said USAF is more “circumspect”...

The Senate on Tuesday unanimously confirmed the nomination of former Procter & Gamble CEO Bob McDonald to be the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs. In his July 23 confirmation hearing, members on both sides of the aisle lauded McDonald as...

The body of a young man was found in the main landing gear wheel well of an Air Force C-130 during a post-flight inspection at Ramstein AB, Germany, Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby announced July 29. The C-130 had...