Photos: Ice storm paralyzes Altus
February 3rd, 2010 | Air Force | Posted by Tom Spoth
Check out these photos from the aftermath of a nasty ice storm that hit Altus Air Force Base, Okla., last week. There was an inch and a half of ice coating everything — the power was knocked out Jan. 28 and still hasn’t been restored. Most base personnel have been evacuated and normal operations still have not resumed.
All photos were taken by Senior Airman Leandra D. Hernandez.
Volunteers work to clean up the fallen tree limbs at the Wings of Freedom Park.
More photos after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »
Montana to Moseley … touchdown!
January 6th, 2010 | Air Force Chief of Staff football | Posted by Tom Spoth
Two new members of the Lighting Science Group Corp.’s board of directors are famous for their aerial exploits.
One of them is former Air Force chief of staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley.
The other is Joseph C. Montana Jr. — better known as Joe.
Yes, that Joe Montana: winner of four Super Bowls, member of the Pro Footba
ll Hall of Fame.
Of course, I’m sure Lighting Science Group picked him not for his gridiron prowess, but because he’s a founding partner of something called HRJ Capital and owner of the real estate investment company Montana Property Group, as the company’s press release points out.
I’m guessing that neither Montana nor Moseley have any specia
l technical expertise in LED lighting products, which is what Lighting Science Group makes. Their careers do have some interesting parallels, though.
Moseley logged more than 2,800 flight hours as a fighter pilot; Montana completed more than 3,400 passes. They both wore elaborate uniforms and protective helmets, and both received many shiny trophies and/or medals for achievements in their respective fields. Also, both men ended their career on a low note: Moseley had to resign because of the service’s problems handling nuclear weapons and components, while Montana spent two forgettable years with the Kansas City Chiefs after achieving greatness with the San Francisco 49ers.
I’m pretty sure Montana never received a “letter of admonishment” from the NFL, though.
A jet, a tiara and a knee board
October 15th, 2009 | Air Force F-15 | Posted by Bruce Rolfsen
Miss Idaho visits Mountain Home
Sometimes a picture is worth 1,000 flyovers.
Miss Idaho —Kara Jackson — was the guest of Mountain Home Air Force .Base Oct. 7 and 8.
No word on what life support thought of Miss Idaho’s non-military spec headgear and name sash
“We were very happy to host Miss Idaho,” Col. John Bird, commander of the base’s 366th Fighter Wing, said in release that went with this picture “Any time we can tell the Air Force story, especially to someone who reaches out across the state like she does, it’s a win for our service.”
Photo credit: Airman 1st Class Renishia Richardson
Say good-bye to the T-37 Tweet
July 14th, 2009 | aircraft training | Posted by Bruce Rolfsen
The fini flight of the Air Force’s T-37 Tweet trainer fleet is set for July 31 out of Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas.
That day, the last of Sheppard’s T-37s will fly to the boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona.
The jet trainer has been around since 1956 and is being phased out in favor of the T-6 Texan.
Warthogs to Kandahar
July 7th, 2009 | Afghanistan | Posted by Bruce Rolfsen
The Marine Corps isn’t the only service boosting its numbers in southern Afghanistan.
A-10 Warthogs are headed for Kandahar Airfield, the base’s new wing commander, Brig. Gen. Guy M. Walsh, said last week after taking command of the 451st Air Expeditionary Wing. Walsh has spent much of his active-duty and Air National Guard career as an A-10 pilot.
No word on if the A-10s will be in addition to the A-10 and F-15E fighters already flying out of Bagram Airfield in northeastern Afghanistan or a case of moving the fighters closer to the action.
New PT test scoring sheet on the way
July 6th, 2009 | PT test | Posted by Mike Hoffman
It’s coming and it’s going to make it tougher to pass the PT test. Yes, the scoring sheet that determines how many points you get for how well you perform each section of the PT test is changing. Service officials said it could be out as early as this month.
Of course, rolling out the scoring sheet at the same time the new PT test was announced would have been too easy. So, I have to take former Chief Master Seargent of the Air Force Rodney McKinley at his word that it is going to be tougher.
He added the new scoring matrix will be more fair. Granted, the waist measurement will still not be scaled for height or age, but the new scoring scale will make more sense when it comes to awarding points for pushups, situps and the 1.5 mile run. Gone are the days it took 25 extra pushups to add two points to your overall score, McKinley said.
So what’s the hold up? The bureaucrats inside the Pentagon first have to get the changes to the fitness Air Force Instruction approved. From what it sounds like, though, it just requires the right general to make time in his day to sign off on it.
Air Force jets joined by Marine Harriers
July 6th, 2009 | Uncategorized | Posted by Bruce Rolfsen
Air Force warplanes over Afghanistan have some new company.
Marine Corps AV-8B Harriers have joined in the fight, according the Air Force’s Central daily airpower summary of missions flown July 4 and 5.
While Marine Harriers have often flown missions over Iraq, there has been little to no mention of the jets over Afghanistan. Last week, hundreds of Marines were flown into Helmand Province to take control of the Taliban haven.
No word on if the Harriers are carrier based or flying from Kandahar Airfield, an air hub for air operations over southern Afghanistan