US Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa officials activated the 764th Specialized Contracting Squadron at Ramstein AB, Germany, according to a base release. “Today, the 764th is the first specialized contracting squadron to officially stand up,” said Col. Mario Troncoso, Air Force Installation Contracting Agency director, who presided over the Oct. 2 ceremony. The squadron’s mission is “to provide acquisition support to all of USAFE-AFAFRICA for purchases worth more than $2 million or any amount that supports multiple locations,” states the Oct. 2 release. The squadron took over the functions previously executed by the 700th Contracting Squadron’s specialized contracting flight. Under an Air Force-wide realignment, specialized contracting flights are transitioning to squadrons and will fall under AFICA, states the release. The agency is headquartered at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. (Ramstein report by SSgt. Ryan Crane)
The Air Force overall reduced its size by 120 aircraft in fiscal year 2021, but kept about the same number of fighter, bomber and attack aircraft, according to data supplied by the service. The F-35 fleet saw the biggest increase while the B-1B bomber fleet saw the largest decline.