Tag Archive for: Air Force

You are here: / Air Force

Posts

Air Force Reviewing Petition to Restore Rank of Vietnam-Era General

/in , , ,

lavelle

A controversial Air Force case dating back to 1972 is stirring up  debate over whether to posthumously restore the honor and ranks to Maj. Gen John D. Lavelle, who was demoted and fired over alleged unauthorized airstrikes over North Vietnam.

In 2010, Pentagon officials petitioned members of the Senate Armed Services Committee to restore Lavelle’s rank. The panel — mainly Senators John McCain and Carl Levin — rejected it due to “inconsistencies” in information provided at the time.

Former Air Force officer Dr. Mark Clodfelter has spearheaded bringing Lavelle’s case back before the Air Force.

“There’s no doubt in my mind he was thrown under the bus,” said Clodfelter.

The case centers on then-Air Force Chief of Staff Gen John D. Ryan firing the four-star Lavelle for “allegedly conducting unauthorized airstrikes against North Vietnam and ordering the falsification of mission reports,” according to Clodfelter’s research.

When officials agreed to halt Operation Rolling Thunder in 1968, the agreement stipulated that in exchange for stopping the bombing, the North Vietnamese would not attempt to shoot down American reconnaissance aircraft surveilling the area.

But when tensions flared up again, armed U.S. Air Force and Navy fighters began escorting the recon aircraft in the surface-to-air missile laden area for safe measure.

Between 1971 and 1972, firings on U.S. aircraft increased tenfold, and Lavelle grew increasingly concerned how best to proceed.

In February 1972, Lavelle took pre-planned actions — which investigators say violated any interpretation of the rules of engagement.

It was found that Lavelle had conducted “28 unauthorized missions, consisting of 147 sorties, during a four-month span in which Seventh Air Force flew between 25,000 and 40,000 total sorties,” Clodfelter wrote.

Lavelle chose an “early retirement” and settled for the Senate’s decision to demote him two ranks.

Lavelle died in July 10, 1979.

Clodfelter added the effort is about “righting a wrong, an injustice that’s now existed for almost 45 years.”

Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson has agreed to review the case before an official recommendation is made. If approved, the petition would head to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis before potential White House approval and a future Senate committee vote.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.

Air Force Culture Change Pressed By New Secretary

/in , ,

Heather Wilson2

By Debbie Gregory.

New Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson thinks the Air Force has too much bureaucracy, too many regulations and too many people stuck doing busy work. And she wants to breathe some fresh air into the branch.

The Air Force is currently facing a crisis-level shortage in fighter pilots as well as an aging fleet, and the Rhodes Scholar is looking to improve all aspects of the service branch.

Wilson, 56,  feels that this may happen by relieving airmen of undue bureaucratic and training requirements, which many believe has driven Air Force pilots into commercial aviation.

Wilson’s attitude is: “Let’s not try to tell them how to do everything. Let’s tell them what to do, and let them surprise us with their ingenuity.”

The Air Force has 660,000 airmen, but is struggling to keep up with its demands. Wilson is advocating for adding additional aircraft and people.

The Keene, N.H. native was recruited for the job by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, a science and engineering university where Wilson served as president.

“Heather Wilson is a leader for all seasons,” Mattis said in a statement. “She distinguished herself as an active-duty Air Force officer and as the president of a university. Her experience in Congress and the private sector made her the ideal choice to lead the Air Force.”

Wilson was one of the first women to join the Air Force Academy when classes were opened up to women.  She graduated in 1982 from the Air Force in Colorado Springs. She had secured a slot in flight school, but was surprised to learn she also had been accepted as a Rhodes Scholar.

She earned her doctoral degree at Oxford University. She worked as a planning officer at the headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and at the Pentagon.

“To me, I work for General Mattis and the United States Air Force, and I am here to serve the Air Force and organize, train and equip the Air Force and make sure it sustain combat operations in air and space,” she said. “My role is to focus on securing that, and that’s what General Mattis has asked me to do. That’s a mission that can and am happy to do.”

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.

Air Force Submits Wish List to Congress

/in , ,

(Lockheed Martin) Biz10-LMT-020816

By Debbie Gregory.

Congress asks for unfunded lists from each service on an annual basis. The documents help guide lawmakers as they work through the budget requests and form policy and spending bills. The Air Force’s $10.7 billion unfunded priorities “wish list” submitted to Capitol Hill last month is heavy on research and development, but it also includes buying more aircraft , specifically F-35s and KC-46s.

Some $70 million would be earmarked to develop a “high power microwave weapon capable of multi-shot, multi-target ability to knock out digital electronic systems with low or no collateral damage and within anti-access area-denial environments.” A hypersonic prototype “to accelerate a Time Sensitive Target Engagement” also made the list.

The service has also planned $8 million for a light attack aircraft. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein, as well as other top officials have endorsed the flight demo as a way to test whether a buy of inexpensive aircraft can help the force better meet readiness challenges.

The Air Force included 14  F-35A joint strike, three KC-46As, 12 MC-130Js, as well as one additional HC-130.

The EC-130H Compass Call program is based on an electronic attack aircraft, the Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules. The aircraft is heavily modified to disrupt enemy command and control communications, perform offensive counter-information operations, and do other kinds of electronic attack. To keep the Compass Call program on track, the Air Force would need an additional $284.6 million for a number of initiatives. About $30 million would go to extend the life of the current EC-130H aircraft because the replacement program lags behind schedule.

The wish list also includes $131.6 million for various modifications for fourth- and fifth-generation fighter jets.

The wish list included $360 million for nuclear deterrence operations, with nuclear command, control and communications emerging as a priority, and $563 million for cyberspace needs.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.

Air Force Faces Shortage of Fighter Pilots

/in ,

fighter pilor shortage

By Debbie Gregory.

The loss of highly trained and experienced pilots from the U.S. military to the private sector is a legitimate worry. And the U.S. Air Force says its deficit of fighter pilots is growing.

At the end of fiscal year 2016, the Air Force was short 750 fighter pilots, up from 511 at the end of the previous year.

“The health of the fighter pilot community is bad,” said Lt. Gen. Chris Nowland, Air Force deputy chief of staff for operations, plans and requirements (AF/A3). “Recruiting and getting people on to fly is not a problem,” he added. “If you look across the Air Force, the quality of the individuals coming into the Air Force are some of the highest we ever had. That goes for the enlisted and officer force.”

The past 25 years of continuous combat operations has taken a toll on the Air Force fighter community. Compounding the problem since fiscal 2014, losses of fighter pilots have exceeded the Air Force’s annual production capacity.

The Air Force is tackling the problem of capacity.  There is a lot of infrastructure associated with ramping up pilot numbers.

The Air Force and has started several initiatives to fix problem areas with a threefold approach: reducing the number of fighter pilot requirements, increasing retention of pilots and increasing the production of new fighter pilots.

Much of the impact on the military flying community stems from the draw of commercial airlines, who have been hiring at an increased rate the past three years.

“There are three pillars that a lot of people focus on when considering staying in the military; quality of service, quality of life and monetary compensation,” said Col. Jason Cockrum, the AF/A3 director of staff. “Nobody in the civilian sector can compete with quality of service. What Airmen go out and do every day for our nation, you just can’t get that anywhere else.”

He continued, “So we are focused on improvements related to quality of life and monetary compensation. We are not going to be able to compete directly with the airline industry on the monetary piece, but we are focusing on how we can ensure the other two pillars offset any differences offered by the civilian sector.”

Air Force to Recruit “Cyber SWAT Team”

/in ,

af cyber

By Debbie Gregory.

Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James announced the new, jokingly referring to the new service as “a nerd cyber SWAT team.”

The Air Force’s Defense Digital Service (DDS) will be a small team that will “help us build software excellence into new programs and troubleshoot existing programs that run into difficulties with software,” according to James.

The GPS Next Operational Control System (OCX) program “ran into some problems, in part, because we collectively underestimated the level of software complexity and the cybersecurity that the project would require,” James said. “So we brought in these experts — many of whom came from Silicon Valley — and they helped us to understand some very advanced, new software tools and techniques and practices. They gave us some advice that helped us collectively bring the program back on track.”

“The Air Force digital service is going to be a component of the [Defense Department] digital service,” James said, “which is a group of extremely talented engineers with skills honed in the private sector who today have come into government for a brief period of time …”

DDS is itself an offshoot of the U.S. Digital Service, which was created in 2014 with a mission of recruiting top private-sector technical talent to serve short stints in government to solve technical challenges such as overhauling the healthcare.gov website.

In addition to launching the AFDS, James said that the Air Force intends to grow its cyber workforce by 3,000 airmen in the Air National Guard by 2019. She said the new personnel would bring private sector experience to Guard units in 34 states.

James said that the next Air Force secretary must focus on a number of priorities including growing the workforce, improving readiness, upgrading conventional and nuclear systems and developing space capabilities.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.

Air Force Relaxes Tattoo Policy to Help Recruitment

/in ,

tattat

By Debbie Gregory.

In an effort to open the door to more recruits who would otherwise be barred from service because of their body ink, the U.S. Air Force is revamping its restrictions on tattoos.

The U.S. Marines overhauled its tattoo restrictions about six months ago, with the goal of balancing “the personal desires of Marines with high standards of professional military appearance and heritage.”

The new Air Force tattoo policy, which goes into effect on February 1, eliminates the “25% coverage rule” which limited the relative size of tattoos on the chest, back, arms and legs. The rule had required that no tattoos cover more than 25% of the body part or readily visible when wearing a uniform.

The policy will not affect areas of the body where tattoos are currently not allowed, including the neck, face, head, tongue, lips and scalp. Hand tattoos will be limited to a single-band ring tattoo on one finger of one hand. The Air Force said that would preserve the ability to present a formal military image when required with dress uniforms at certain events.

Tattoos, brands and body markings that are obscene, affiliated with gangs or extremist groups, along with those that advocate sexual, racial, ethnic or religious discrimination, are still banned.

While Marines can have an unlimited number of tattoos that are covered by the properly fitting standard physical training uniform (green t-shirt and green shorts) any tattoo, regardless of where it is, cannot express sexism, nudity, racism, vulgarity, or anything that is offensive as to discredit the Marine Corps or damage the nation’s expectations of them.

One in every five people looking at signing up had tattoos requiring review or that could be considered disqualifying, the Air Force said.

“These changes allow the Air Force to aggressively recruit talented and capable Americans who until now might not have been able to serve our country in uniform,” Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody said.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.

 

Will Air Force Personnel Shortage Have Critical Impacts?

/in ,

Air-Force-chief-Service-short-30-000-airmen

By Debbie Gregory.

Gen. David Goldfein, the Air Force chief of staff , said the service is critically short of personnel and needs to expand by more than 30,000 active-duty service members. Otherwise, the service branch may face challenges in meeting its security obligations, including an air war against Islamic State militants.

Goldfein said he will recommend expanding the size of the active duty Air Force from its current size of about 317,000 to 350,000. It would probably take five or six years to reach the higher level. Under current plans, the Air Force had planned to grow to 321,000.

At the start of the Gulf War, the Air Force had 134 fighter squadrons. Over the past few decades, that number has been cut to 55.

Yet, the Air Force is conducting nearly 70 percent of the strike missions against ISIS and conducting 90 percent of midair refueling missions over Iraq and Syria since August 2014.

Goldfein, who is described as a pilot’s pilot, has not just flown F-16s and F-117As, the kind of warplanes associated with an Air Force officer. He has also piloted the MQ-9 Reaper.

The Air Force is delivering weapons and ammunition to Iraqi forces battling the Islamic State, and has air-dropped supplies to a rebel force marching on Raqqa, the Islamic State’s de facto capital in Syria. It is also responding to other global crises.

Russia and China are emerging as potential threats that could challenge the U.S. military in ways the Islamic State has not. China is expanding its presence in the South China Sea and Russia has become a major player in Syria’s civil war, siding with the regime of President Bashar Assad.

The U.S. Air Force has rarely been challenged in the skies during its campaign against the Islamic State. That could change if the United States were to face another nation’s military capable of challenging the U.S. military’s technological advantages.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.

Air Force Developing an ‘EMP Missile’ to Counter North Korea

/in , ,

champ

By Debbie Gregory.

While not quite ready for prime time, the Air Force Research Laboratory is looking to develop an air-launched directed-energy weapon capable of incapacitating the nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles utilized by North Korea.

The experimental Counter-electronics High Power Microwave Advanced Missile Project (CHAMP) weapon uses bursts of electromagnetic pulse (EMP) energy to disable electronic systems.

Air Force officials believe that in an emergency, the weapon could be operational.

After testing on October 16 at the Utah Test and Training Range by the Boeing Phantom Works/U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory Directed Energy Directorate team, the Air Force says that the CHAMP works, but that it needs to get extremely close to the target to be effective, and there are still a lot of unknowns.

“In theory, high-powered microwaves will damage electronics, but I am not sure we really know how much power is necessary to disable specific systems that may be complex and hardened?” said Jeffrey Lewis, the Director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey.

Though speculation exists surrounding the weapon’s effectiveness against military-hardened electronics, the prospects of its use are bright.

“This technology marks a new era in modern-day warfare,” said Keith Coleman, Boeing Phantom Works’ CHAMP Program Manager. “In the near future, this technology may be used to render an enemy’s electronic and data systems useless even before the first troops or aircraft arrive.”

But it’s possible that the entire conversation is really about securing funding for the CHAMP program.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.

 

Family Fights for Veteran’s Recovery

/in , , ,

maynor

By Debbie Gregory.

On October 25th, a heartbreaking post appeared on Angela Tuckett’s Facebook page, addressed to the Hampton VA Medical Staff.

“My Father is retired Chief Msgt Roger Maynor, room 419A, he was transferred to your hospital on Friday Night from McGuire veterans hospital. We were told that he was here temporarily for a rehab treatment for 3 weeks and would then be transferred back to McGuire for further treatment. But this morning we are told that he is being sent to a nursing facility to basically just lay in a bed.”

Maynor, 63, retired from the Air Force after serving 30 years, including being stationed at Langley AFB. He was doing volunteer work in 2014 in a remote section of the Philippines when he fell from a ladder and sustained a major brain injury.

The family’s struggle to arrange Maynor’s care has involved two long years, thousands of miles, nearly $50,000 and a bureaucratic mess with the Veterans Administration.

Although Maynor has been comatose since the injury, daughter Teri Vick sadi, “We know he’s in there. We talked to him, he nodded his head at me.”

The cost of a special medical flight to get him back to the U.S. was $45,000. His family learned it was not covered by insurance. They appealed to lawmakers, the military, and the VA, but were denied any financial help. Maynor remained in the Philippines for two years.

Maynor’s family was finally able to raise the money for the flight and he was transported to Richmond McGuire Veterans Medical Center, a pioneer in the VA medical system for a brain injury therapy known as emerging consciousness.

Emerging consciousness therapy aims to keep the body as healthy as possible, so that the patients injured brain will be more receptive to stimulation.

However, after getting a discouraging prognosis, Richmond doctors told the family that Maynor had to be transferred to Hampton.

But following the Facebook post, doctors told the family that Maynor would be sent back to the Richmond VAMC to get the vital therapy.

Maynor’s family says they’re grateful that the VA is giving him a fighting chance.

“We’re not going to a nursing home,” Michelle Maynor said. “We brought him all this way. We paid all this money — for help. Not to be shoved under a rug and forgotten. That’s our fear – getting lost in the system. We’re not going to let that happen.

Daughter Teri gave a special shout out to our friends at Fisher House. She said, “The Fisher House has not only been an island in the storm, it’s been like finding a resort when all you needed was a bed and a shower. Maybe a little dignity if at all possible. We are eternally grateful for the hospitality offered by the Fisher House while we endure this long journey ahead. We feel just that much more human. I know that others have and will continue to receive this blessing.”

We second that, and send our best wishes to this family.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.

Peterson AFB Discharges Water with Toxic Chemicals

/in ,

peterson

By Debbie Gregory.

Peterson Air Force Base has confirmed that more than 150,000 gallons of water tainted with toxic chemicals were released into the Colorado Springs Utilities sewer system last week.

The release of the Air Force firefighting chemicals came from a holding tank that was designed to corral the firefighting chemicals at a Peterson training area. It was discovered during a routine inspection.

The contamination of wells in Security, Widefield and Fountain has left thousands of residents scrambling for bottled water, even though the contaminated water was not drinking water, but rather wastewater.

The chemical in the water is a perfluorinated compound, a substance that the Environmental Protection Agency warns can cause ailments including liver and kidney damage and may trigger cancer.

All the water flowing to homes supplied by the Security and Fountain water systems now comes from the Pueblo Reservoir — meaning that this spill should not affect those communities.

“The Air Force has demonstrated its commitment to identifying and addressing (perfluorinated compound) contamination at Peterson Air Force Base and facilities nationwide,” the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said.

The gaffe is the latest in a string of incidents involving PFC-contaminated water from the base. Nearby well water consumers noticed an elevated level of the chemical compound in water earlier in 2016.

Peterson Air Force Base spent $4.3 million to filter and provide drinking water to those who had been affected.

An investigation has been opened to determine the cause of the discharge, said Col. Doug Schiess, who commands Peterson’s 21st Space Wing. They are also working to ensure no future mistakes are allowed to transpire.

Military Connection salutes and proudly serves veterans and service members in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Guard and Reserve,  and their families.


© 2006-2020 Military Connection, Owned by BL, LLC. All rights reserved

Military Connection