The Air Force has released its draft environmental assessment of the proposed airspace boundary changes to the Mountain Home Range Complex for Mountain Home AFB, Idaho. The service wants to expand the lateral and vertical boundaries of the Paradise East and Paradise West portions of the complex, increasing the total training airspace from 7,501 square nautical miles to 9,680 square nautical miles. The draft EA finds that implementing this action “would not result in significant impacts to human health or the natural environment.” (Draft EA; caution, large file) The document states that the changes would allow for more realistic training scenarios for the airmen of Mountain Home’s 366th Fighter Wing, who fly F-15s and F-15Es. The public comment period on the draft EA began June 15 and concludes on Aug. 1. (For more, read Mountain Home’s release.)
The Next-Generation Air Dominance Fighter is Air Combat Command’s top priority, because without it, the Air Force can’t provide the control of the air the whole military depends on to operate, Air Combat Command chief Gen. Mark D. Kelly said. He also named a replacement for the E-3 AWACS, new…