Free Republic

The Pentagon insists it isn't reviving the Strategic Air Command. The Cold War is over -- supposedly. SAC and its workhorse B-52 became uncomfortable symbols of that long, weary struggle waged on the edge of thermonuclear destruction. However, the U.S. Air Force's decision to consolidate control of its strategic bomber fleet into a single headquarters certainly has SAC-like Cold War mission echoes. This also applies to the behavior of Vladimir Putin and his imperialist Kremlin. Thermonuclear threats continue. Despite President Barack Obama's assurances, Iran will acquire nuclear weapons. If Iran goes nuclear, Saudi Arabia and Turkey may, as well. It's...

Depending on who’s talking, the North American F-107A was either the best fighter the Air Force didn’t have the sense to buy, or a politically flawed loser from the outset. The F-107A will be remembered forever, if it is remembered at all, for being configured as no jet had been before or since: the sharp-edged maw of its air intake, feeding a prototype Pratt & Whitney YJ-75 engine, was just above and behind the cockpit, giving the otherwise sleek fighter the look of a fourth grader with an oversize backpack. In an era of dart-like Mirages and Delta Daggers, the...

For nearly 50 years, Strategic Air Command maintained an unsparing, no-nonsense operational culture. After the Air Force disestablished the legendary SAC at the end of the Cold War, however, USAF’s nuclear element slowly drifted away from that exacting standard. It was a mistake, as everyone now will readily, almost compulsively, concede. That certainly goes for Lt. Gen. Frank G. Klotz, the officer chosen to head USAF’s new Global Strike Command. “If there is one unchanging, immutable truth” about the nuclear arsenal, said Klotz, “it is that it demands constant and undivided attention.” That didn’t carry on in the post-SAC years,...

For the second time in less than a year, the U.S. Air Force has relieved the commander of a combat wing. This time it was the 5th Bomb Wing, a B-52 outfit. Previously, the commander of one of the three Minuteman ICBM wings was relieved. The three missile wings control 450 American Minuteman III ICBMs. In this case, two other senior officers were also relieved (one of them the guy in charge of the Wing Maintenance Squadron.) In both cases, the reason was "loss of confidence in his ability to command". That's milspeak for "too many little things have gone...

Just go to the LINK here, hit the little arrow below the photo, and video will stream from Japanese TV today. Takes a few seconds to load.Lots of action.Link will be good for another 24 hours or so.Goes inside the command/control center for nuclear launch of ICBMs from Montana (Malmstron AF Base, US Air Force) and also shows US commandoes in action in anti-nuke terrorist training. A "don't mess with us" statement is also issued by a US nuke command military spokesman--thankfully so.Eagles Up.