The 62nd Airlift Wing at McChord AFB, Wash., shone in the newly completed no-notice limited nuclear surety inspection carried out by Air Mobility Command, receiving a “satisfactory” rating, the highest grade possible for this type of demanding going-over. Despite the no notice, the wing was “completely ready” to perform its nuclear mission “at a high level of expertise,” said Col. Jerry Martinez, AMC inspector general. This is even though the wing’s commander and all of its group commanders are new and weren’t even present at the unit’s last NSI in January. (It received a satisfactory rating then, too.) The wing, which operates C-17s, is the nation’s primary nuclear airlift force, with responsibility for transporting nuclear weapons, when called upon. This is in addition to its daily cargo and personnel hauling duties. (Scott report by TSgt. Scott T. Sturkol)
Unlike nearly every other innovative technology throughout history, Maj. Gen. DeAnna M. Burt believes the space enterprise emerged backward. “Every other domain started with an entrepreneur who built something,” Burt, the special assistant to the Chief of Space Operations, told an audience at AFA’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference.