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Beechcraft hopes Congress will get involved to kill a U.S. Air Force contract with its Brazilian rival Embraer to make $431 million worth of fighter planes for Afghanistan.

In a story which I can attest is accurate, Gina Loudon at WND.com, formerly WorldNetDaily, reports that the Air Force's 624th Operations Center is warning airmen not to look at the news. That's not exactly what they're saying, but they might as well be. What the "Notice to Airmen" says is that "Users are not to use AF NIPRNET systems to access the Verizon phone records collection and other related news stories because the action could constitute a Classified Message Incident." It's currently pretty hard to go to a news site without seeing a blurb on a "related story," given...

President Obama has said the outrage over the federal government’s decision to monitor citizens’ phone activity is all “hype.” He might want to share his opinion with the Air Force, which is ordering members of the service not to look at news stories about it. WND has received an unclassified NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) that warns airmen not to look at news stories related to the data-mining scandal. The notice applies to users of the Air Force NIPRNET (Non-classified Internet Protocol Router Network), which is the only way that many troops stationed overseas and on bases in the U.S. are...

An inspirational painting that referenced a Bible verse has been removed from a dining hall at Mountain Home Air Force Base after an anti-religion group filed a complaint. The painting featured a medieval crusader and referenced Matthew 5:9, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”

The sequester cuts have grounded the Thunderbirds and other U.S. military flight demonstration teams, but it hasn’t stopped Air Force Academy graduates from getting their own ceremonial flyover. With the help of donations, nine World War II era planes, flown by pilots from the Texas Flying Legends Museum and the National Museum of World War II Aviation, performed at the U.S. Air Force Class of 2013 commencement ceremony in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Wednesday.

Beneath a rousing flyover of decades-old warbirds, 1,024 newly commissioned second lieutenants graduated Wednesday from the Air Force Academy - saluting the military's past while looking to its future. Air Force Secretary Michael Donley, in one of his last acts as the Air Force's top civilian, implored the cadets to tackle the service's many challenges, a lingering war, fiscal uncertainty and the "scourge" of pervasive sexual assaults during the ceremony at Falcon Stadium. "Each of you is responsible for the character of this Air Force, and its reputation," Donley said. "And I therefore charge you to serve with integrity, and...

The “World Famous Rocketeers” were flying high two months ago. The Air Force fighter squadron had returned safely with its F-15E Strike Eagles and aircraft crews from a six-month Middle East deployment, and in March the entire wing passed a readiness evaluation with an unusually high rating. That was then. In April, the Air Force ordered the Rocketeers — more formally, the 336th Fighter Squadron — to stop flying because of the automatic budget cuts known as sequestration. Now, the squadron’s two dozen F-15s are parked underneath canopies on the flight line, with red covers over their gaping afterburners to...

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, and the U.S. Air Force will soon reach an agreement on a certification plan that would allow the company to vie for national security payload launch contracts with the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy spaceflight launch systems, according to Aviation Week. Founded by billionaire Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, SpaceX opened a Huntsville office in Cummings Research Park in 2010. The private company started in 2002 to design, manufacture and launch advanced rockets and spacecraft and employs about 2,000 workers at its California headquarters. To reduce the costs associated with space launches,...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Air Force stripped an unprecedented 17 officers of their authority to control - and, if necessary, launch - nuclear missiles after a string of unpublicized failings, including a remarkably dim review of their unit's launch skills. The group's deputy commander said it is suffering "rot" within its ranks.

PALMDALE (CBSLA.com) — A Palmdale mother of a seven-month-old son was one of three airman killed in a Central Asia tanker plane crash Friday. The tanker was supporting American troops in Afghanistan. Capt. Victoria “Tori” A. Pinckney, 27, was killed in the crash of a KC-135 tanker near Chon-Aryk, Krygyzstan, the Defense Department announced. KKTV, a Colorado Springs CBS affiliate, reports that Pinckney was a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and recent mom. She was one of three airmen in a KC-135 refueling plane that crashed in the mountains after a midair explosion during a refueling operation, the...

An Air Force spokesperson said personnel are not allowed to proselytize but are free to express their personal religious beliefs so long as it “does not make others uncomfortable.” But a critic pointed out an Air Force officer was told to remove a Bible that was on his desk. “When on duty or in an official capacity, Air Force members are free to express their personal religious beliefs as long as it does not make others uncomfortable,” Lt. Col. Laurel Tingley said in a statement to Fox News. “Proselytizing (inducing someone to convert to one’s faith) goes over that line.”...

The U.S. Air Force prefers to use its F-16 fighters for everything. While the F-16 is a capable and versatile aircraft, the main reason for using it so much is because it is so cheap to operate. It costs the air force $23,000 per hour to operate an F-16C. Other fighters are much more expensive. An F-22 costs $68,000 an hour, while an F-15C costs $42,000 and an F-15E $36,000. The only aircraft that beats the F-16C is the A-10C, which costs $18,000 an hour. But the A-10 is not a fighter and is optimized for ground support. The F-16...

A pilot who died when his light aircraft crashed just a few metres away from a house was reportedly a US Air Force general.

WASHINGTON — The Marine helicopter squadron responsible for flying President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, cabinet members and other VIPs has a new aircraft: An MV-22 Osprey. HMX-1’s tilt-rotor aircraft is painted green and will be used in a support role, transporting the president’s staff and the media, Marine spokesman Capt. Richard Ulsh confirmed. Helicopters that transport the president are typically painted white on top and referred to as “white tops.” “The Osprey is a staple within our fleet. It has proven itself in the most difficult environments as a capable and reliable asset,” Ulsh said, noting that including...

NEW DELHI: China can "throw'' at least 21 fighter squadrons against India, from its eight airbases in Tibet and other airfields to their north. Even more Chinese fighters can join forces if they are able to overfly Myanmar. Similarly, Pakistan can deploy 21 to 25 fighter squadrons against India. With this hard-nosed assessment in mind after defence minister AK Antony himself asked the forces to be ready for the twin-threat posed by China and Pakistan, the largest-ever combat exercise undertaken by IAF tested its capability for a two-front contingency by deploying "swing forces'' from the western theatre right across to...

MOSCOW, April 11 (RIA Novosti) – The Russian Air Force is hoping to receive a new long-range fighter-interceptor by 2020 and retire its existing fleet of MiG-31 interceptors by 2028, Air Force Commander Lt. Gen. Viktor Bondarev said on Thursday. “We have started development of a new aircraft of this type and I think we can develop this plane before the state armament program ends in 2020,” Bondarev said at a meeting with Russian lawmakers. “The new plane should replace the existing fleet by 2028,” he said. Bondarev spoke out against restarting production of the MiG-31, which was stopped 20...

According to internal documents obtained by Air Force Times, beginning on Apr. 9, 2013, the U.S. Air Force will begin grounding front line combat units as a consequence of sequestration and the need to deal with budget cuts. Seventeen squadrons belonging to the various U.S. Air Force commands are going to be affected by the stand down order. The grounding is aimed to save the 44,000 flying hours (worth 591 million USD) through September. The funded 241,496 flying hours will be distributed to those squadrons that will remain combat ready or are expected to keep a reduced readiness level called...

A Russian bomber recently carried out simulated cruise missile attacks on U.S. missile defenses in Asia, raising new questions about Moscow’s goal in future U.S.-Russian defense talks. According to U.S. officials, a Russian Tu-22M Backfire bomber on Feb. 26 simulated firing air-launched cruise missiles at an Aegis ship deployed near Japan as part of U.S. missile defenses. A second mock attack was conducted Feb. 27 against a ground-based missile defense site in Japan that officials did not identify The Pentagon operates an X-band missile defense radar on the

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Air Force says it cost $2.1 million to send two nuclear-capable B-2 bombers on a training exercise over South Korea that was widely viewed as a show of force in response to weeks of threats from North Korea.</p>

A B-52 bomber took part in training exercises over South Korean airspace on Tuesday simulating bombing raids on North Korea. The symbol of brute American power during the Cold War took off from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam and "successfully completed a four-hour training exercise," according to a military source here.

A chaplain who was awarded the Bronze Star has spoken out about the tour – and what appears to have been misleading media coverage. In an interview with TheBlaze.com, Lt. Col. Jon Trainer, USAF, discussed the award and the PowerPoint presentation that has generated controversy. The presentation, which was titled, “Proper Handling and Disposal of Islamic Religious Material,” was written in the wake of the accidental burning of defaced Korans by American troops. The resulting riots when the news broke lead to 30 deaths, including two U.S. troops. Initial coverage of the medal in conservative media outlets lead former Congressman...

WASHINGTON -- The 911th Airlift Wing is safe, Air Force officials told Pennsylvania's congressional delegation this morning, reversing the military's decision last year to wind down operations and close the base by September. The base will keep its seven C-130 planes and even get one more, officials said after speaking with the Air Force this morning. "In the end, the Air Force finally agreed that the 911th is one of the most efficient, skilled, and mission-ready airlift units in the country," said U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Upper St. Clair, whose district includes the base. The 911th Airlift Wing will remain...

"The best and only safe road to honor, glory, and true dignity is justice." -- George Washington (1779) A Bronze Star Power Point? Actually, not ... Drive-by Journalism at Its Worst In keeping with our publishing deadlines, every Tuesday morning I send notice of my topic for Thursday's column to our editorial team. This week, I sent notice that I was writing about "military award inflation," and particularly a story from reputable news sources about an Air Force chaplain, Lt. Col. Jon Trainer, who received a Bronze Star for a PowerPoint. I first read this story under an inflammatory National...

Air Force Chaplain Awarded Bronze Star for PowerPoint Teaching Proper Sensitivity for the Koran An Air Force chaplain has been awarded a Bronze Star for his service in crafting an especially good PowerPoint about how to treat Islamic religious materials with sensitivity, according to Ohio’s Dayton Daily News. After U.S. troops in Afghanistan accidentally burned copies of the Koran, sparking riots that took over 30 lives, Lieutenant Colonel Jon Trainer came to the rescue: After the accidental burning last year of Qurans by U.S. troops in Afghanistan sparked deadly rioting, an Air National Guard chaplain from Springfield stepped in and...

The Foreign Policy blog is reporting that there is clear evidence the Air Force responded to Rand Paul’s filibuster by trying to get rid of data previously published online. Silly, silly, people. Nothing on the internet ever really goes away. The blog writes, “Quietly and without much notice, the Air Force has reversed its policy of publishing statistics on drone strikes in Afghanistan as the debate about drone warfare hits a fever pitch in Washington. In addition, it has erased previously published drone strike statistics from its website.”

The U.S. Air Force version of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has shortcomings that will get pilots shot down in combat, according to a leaked Pentagon report evaluating combat testing testing of the plane. “The out-of-cockpit visibility in the F-35A is less than other Air Force fighter aircraft,” states the report from the Defense Department's Directorate of Operational Test and Evaluation, referring to a pilot’s ability to see the sky around them. Test pilots’ comments quoted in the report are more blunt. “The head rest is too large and will impede aft [rear] visibility and survivability during surface and air...

I was at the bus stop in DC today, waiting to catch a commuter bus home. Long story short - there was a black guy with a State Dept jacket and a white female in front of me and behind me was a Air Force officer, Major. The USAF officer was commenting on the State Dept guy's new boss and the talk got to Hillary. The USAF Major than stated that she would make a good President and he would vote for her. The two in front of me agreed with the woman stating she has no competition. This Major's...

Sequestration would leave the Air Force with untrained people, a lack of equipment and be "devastating" to the service, officials said Feb. 7. The warning echoes what Department of Defense officials have stated for months about across-the-board defense cuts, in addition to an ongoing continuing resolution. "Now that we're staring at that possibility in less than a month, I can tell you, they were right," said Air Force Vice Chief of Staff, Gen. Larry Spencer, during a media roundtable at the Pentagon. The meeting was aimed at discussing the toll that ongoing fiscal insecurity and looming sequestration are taking on...

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has unveiled the country's newest fighter jet, which officials claim can evade radar. Ahmadinejad said at a Saturday ceremony broadcast on state TV that Qaher-313, or Dominant-313, showed Iran's will to "capture peaks." Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi says Qaher is "fully indigenous," designed and built by Iranian aerospace experts. The domestically designed and developed Qaher-313 is similar to the US-built F/A-18, the report said. Photos released by the official IRNA news agency shows Qaher as a single-seat jet, described as a fighter-bomber that can combat both other aircraft and ground targets.

. Computer Sciences Corporation’s performance on a failed $1 billion software project for the Air Force, a major objective of departing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.. An additional $1.1 billion would have been required to fix the system and put it in operation by 2020 -- eight years after the planned date.. “I can understand the senators’ frustration,” Air Force top uniformed acquisition official Lieutenant General Charles Davis.

The Air Force announced Friday it had found hundreds of examples of pornography and tens of thousands of other inappropriate items in a recent sweep of bases and facilities worldwide. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh III in late November ordered wing commanders to scour work areas for pornographic or offensive materials that sexually objectify men or women, and for other “unprofessional” items. (snip) The majority of 631 items deemed pornographic were uncovered in Air Education and Training Command, which oversees training at Lackland and other bases. While most were items like magazines or computer videos that were...

The Air Force today said it found 32,216 instances of inappropriate or offensive material at bases around the world — including explicit magazines at its Air Education and Training Command headquarters in San Antonio — during inspections late last year. The service found 631 instances of pornography in the health and welfare inspections at more than 100 installations worldwide. It also reported finding 27,598 instances of “inappropriate material,” ranging from posters and calendars to graffiti. At the AETC headquarters on Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, 40 explicit magazines were uncovered. The items there and elsewhere were documented or destroyed, the Air...

“Among the most difficult challenges facing the Air Force is the need to modernize,” writes Michael Donley, the Secretary of the Air Force. Despite major engagements in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo, and Libya since the end of the Cold War, the Air Force currently operates the oldest fleet it has ever had. Sadly, sequestration threatens the future of modernization plans, drives up operations and maintenance costs, and prevents the United States from building the Air Force that the country needs in the future. The Air Force fleet is often described as “geriatric” or “decrepit.” It is becoming inadequate to support U.S....

Last week, a cadet publicly quit the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, citing forced prayer and churchgoing. Republican strategist Shirley Husar, in a debate on HuffPost Live, asserted that West Point is “a religious institute.” Merry Christmas, Shirley, but West Point is not a religious institute—though that’s not for want of trying on the Christian right’s part. The cadet in question is 24-year-old Blake Page, who described being “severely punished” for not going to church while in basic training. “You scrubbed floors for four hours or went on rock flipping detail so the rocks could get an even tan...

The end of the airman's pin-up: U.S. Air Force orders pictures of naked women to be taken down after sexual assaults soar All active, reserve and Air National Guard units have 10 days to complete the sweep for offensive images Air Force believes pin-ups are contributing to a rise in sexual assaults Over 700 cases of sexual assault were reported in 2012, 100 more than 2011 By Helen Pow PUBLISHED: 09:43 EST, 7 December 2012 Pictures and calendars featuring half-naked women will be stripped from U.S. Air Force work spaces and public areas under a widespread inspection to stamp out...

Military drones used to track terrorists or insurgents in Afghanistan have also been flying across the U.S. homeland. Newly released documents show U.S. drone flights by the Air Force, Marine Corps and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency for the first time. The Air Force has tested drones in U.S. skies ranging from hand-launched Ravens to the larger Reaper drones responsible for targeting and killing people overseas — all recorded through the Federal Aviation Administration licenses required to fly in national airspace. That information became public through a Freedom of Information Act request from the nonprofit digital rights organization Electronic...

Starting 1 January, 2013 US Military retirees and their families living in the Philippines will be ordered, (mandated), to use only doctors and hospitals that the Tricare Management Activity, (TMA), and their contractor, International SOS, (ISOS), have contracted with to provide medical care to retirees and their families in the Philippines. This is the roll out of the TMA Demonstration Project in the Philippines. The rules state that all retirees must use only the medical providers, (doctors and hospitals), that ISOS was able to beg to agree to be a contracted network provider. If the retiree uses a doctor or...

NEW YORK — A long-serving Air Force chaplain has left the Southern Baptist Convention after the conservative denomination publicly questioned his attendance at a same-sex civil union ceremony at his base in New Jersey. The chaplain, Col. Timothy Wagoner, is remaining on active duty and has affiliated with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, which holds more moderate views on homosexuality and some other issues than the Southern Baptists. "I find very little that is more important and nothing that is more exhilarating than providing for the religious freedoms and spiritual care of all service members and their families — and will...

Serious talk of America's defense budget was largely absent from the final weeks of the presidential campaign, once President Barack Obama likened Gov. Mitt Romney's concerns to an anachronistic focus on "horses and bayonets." But when Mr. Romney lamented that (among other things) the U.S. Air Force has the fewest airplanes it has ever had, he was correct. At its founding in 1947, it had more than 12,300 planes. Today: approximately 5,200. As the Air Force has been retiring large numbers of older aircraft in recent years, its budgets—drafted by the Pentagon and ultimately enacted by Congress—have prevented it from...

This Iraqi Security Force (ISF) update provides a summary of changes to the ISF during October 2012. The Iraqi Security Force Order of Battle is updated as of 31 October 2012. Two speculative maps were published under “ISF Speculation.” The Russian and Czech arms purchases [and US M88s plus Serbian Artillery] were addressed separately in “Iraqi Arms Purchases October 2012”. These topics will not be addressed here. Air and Naval Bases have been added to the ISF OOB map. Highlights in this update include: - Further arms purchases and proposals; Joint US/Iraqi Training Exercise planned; TOC operational and adds Salahaddin;...

This article, which examines the F-22 program from a historical perspective, seeks to answer two questions. First, given the unprecedented age of today’s fighter fleet, why did the Air Force acquire just 187 F-22s? Second, how could alternative decisions during F-22 development have enabled the service to acquire larger numbers of these aircraft? In consideration of this historical analysis, the article then assesses the Air Force’s current efforts to transition to a fleet comprised entirely of fifth-generation fighters.

Barack Obama lost the debate in Boca Raton last night. It must have been the altitude. The president patronized, interrupted, and mocked Republican challenger Mitt Romney throughout the night. In return, Romney acted presidential, and may have put this election away. A key moment of the night in this final policy debate was a set-piece zinger by the president as the candidates discussed military spending: Romney: Our Navy is older — excuse me — our Navy is smaller now than any time since 1917. The Navy said they needed 313 ships to carry out their mission. We’re now down to...

First reports are always wrong. The initial reports were of $4.2 billion in Russian arms buys with 42 Pantsir-S1 units and 30 Mi-28NE helicopters. That led to the following 3 possibilities: A big rip-off. More equipment being bought but not reported. Lower price than reported. The $4.2 billion reported price tag comes from Russian press and was based on Iraq buying everything that was on the table – they didn’t. PM Maliki has denied Russian fighter buys: "we are buying defensive weapons only, air defence equipment and helicopters for anti-terrorist use, not sukhois or migs." There had been previous reports...

How to Build a FLYING SAUCER Declassified documents reveal Air Force’s plan to build a UFO Here's a quirky find from the National Archives: the United States Air Force's 1956 plan to build a saucer-shaped aircraft that would zip across the skies with the greatest of ease. As the Archives explain of "Project 1794, Final Development Summary Report": The Air Force had contracted the work out to a Canadian company, Avro Aircraft Limited in Ontario, to construct the disk-shaped craft. According to the same report, it was designed to be a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) plane designed to reach...

A friend, who's a US commercial airlines pilot, sent this video to me, and it's just amazing. The skill of a water take-off, water-dump on fires, a water landing and re-filling, and taking-off again, probably dozens and hundreds of times, is absolutely amazing. Looks like 3+ -aircraft involved. The photography/video is beautifully done. This is the Spanish AF, though I've not see any USAF videos of this, but a few films of private firms dumping a reddish fire retardant on the western fires this past summer. I can't even begin to imagine the skill this takes. Anyway, enjoy it and...

The United States Air Force was established September 18, 1947.The U.S. Air Force song "Wild Blue Yonder"

Embraer launched a public relations offensive at AirVenture Oshkosh, WI. Super Tucano at AirVenture

The United States has spent nearly $80 billion to develop the most advanced stealth fighter jet in history, the F-22 Raptor, but the Air Force recently found out firsthand that while the planes own the skies at modern long-range air combat, it is "evenly matched" with cheaper, foreign jets when it comes to old-school dogfighting. The F-22 made its debut at the international Red Flag Alaska training exercise this June where the planes "cleared the skies of simulated enemy forces and provided security for Australian, German, Japanese, Polish and [NATO] aircraft," according to an after-action public report by the Air...

Its been nearly eight months since the Pentagon sent its largest and most powerful bomb, the Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP), back to Boeing for modifications necessary to take out Iranian nuclear facilities, but the Air Force says it's now ready to go. Jeff Schogol at Defense News reports that Air Force Secretary Michael Donley says that while the MOP bomb continues to be refined and optimized, the Pentagon feels the 30,000 pound piece of ordnance is now sufficient to strike whatever targets the military may have in mind. While the bomb went back to the drawing board with Pentagon planners...

An American F-16 fighter jet went down in a Russian exclusive economic zone near the Kuril Islands on Sunday. The pilot successfully ejected before the jet plummeted into the waters below. “The Kamchatsky territorial naval rescue center reported at 8:30 am local time (8:30 pm GMT) that an aircraft was in distress over the Pacific Ocean near the northern Kurils,” Andrey Orlov, a spokesman for the Russian Border Guard Service in the Far East said. Later on it turned out to be an American F-16. The Russian Antias border patrol vessel and an An-72 patrol aircraft were dispatched to the...