Advisors from the 738th Air Expeditionary Advisory Group and Afghan air force helicopter aircrew, from Shindand Air Base, delivered critical medical supplies Jan. 27 to inhabitants of two remote villages struck by a measles epidemic.

The epidemic claimed the lives of 12 children in the villages of Sarji and Gaw Hoshtah said advisors. The villages are isolated by mountains and the only delivery method possible for the supplies was by air transport.

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jason Stitt, an MI-17 aerial gunner adviser, said that the Afghan aircrew did a great job during the mission and that it made him feel good to help out those in need.
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Friends and neighbors of 2d Marine Aircraft Wing and MCAS Cherry Point are invited to get in the holiday spirit at this year's 2d MAW Band Christmas Concert at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 9, at the air station's theater. The concert is free and open to ...

The only African-American ace of World War II, and a former Tuskegee Airman, went on to have a career in the Air Force, as well as success in the business world.

Lee A. Archer joined the Army in 1941 with high hopes of becoming a pilot, but was initially denied because of his race. When the Army's policy changed about a year later, Archer was accepted to the training program for black aviators at the Tuskegee Army Airfield in Alabama.

Archer is best known for a day in late 1944 when he was involved in a series of dogfights over German-occupied Hungary. Flying a P-51 Mustang fighter, Archer shot down three German fighters. He would go on to add two more German fighters to his credit to become the first and only African-American ace of the war.
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Four months to the day before the 68th anniversary of the landing at Normandy, the Navy and Marine Corps team conducted another historic amphibious operation.

NFL legend. Heisman Trophy winner. Named as the best running back in college football history by ESPN. These all describe Herschel Walker, best known as a running back for the Dallas Cowboys. However, many people may not know that there are other sides to Walker.

Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Jonathan Greenert visited USS Wasp (LHD 1) to witness, first hand, the on-going Bold Alligator 2012 (BA12) amphibious exercise and to speak with Sailors and Marines, Feb. 4.

Navy is set to deploy a new version of the performance evaluation software used throughout the fleet, officials said Feb. 6.

Since 2002, the Air Force has awarded outstanding Airmen who possess superior foreign language skills and leveraged their capabilities to increase the Air Forces's mission effectiveness.

Senior Airman Michael Abrash was recently selected as the Air Force Language Professional of the Year for 2011.

Although Abrash earned this linguistic honor, he joined the Air Force in a completely different role: a jet engine mechanic. Being a naturalized U.S. citizen since 2000, Abrash was not aware that his proficiency in Russian could help his career.
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With Navy-wide decreases in alcohol-related incidents (ARIs) and driving under the influence (DUI) reports in 2011 over past years, Sailors are reminded to stay responsible in 2012, officials said Feb. 6.

A new fuels training course developed by 364th Training Squadron members here officially started Jan. 23 and graduated its first students Feb. 3.

The Fuels Operational Readiness Capability Equipment Course is designed to teach fuels specialists about new equipment currently being in deployed locations. The main focus is teaching students how to properly operate and troubleshoot the equipment before issues arise, while engineering emerging technology solutions for technical problems as needed.
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Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Roy discussed top Air Force issues with more than 100 military members at Kabul International Airport, Afghanistan, Feb. 1.

Roy spoke about budget issues, resiliency and future capabilities of the Air Force.

The chief said he attempts to visit the advisers at the 438th Air Expeditionary Wing every time he visits locations in the U.S. Central Command. He said it is a mission he believes in and that he had a similar experience when he was the senior enlisted leader and adviser at U.S. Pacific Command.
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A soft light from Senior Airman Sarah Mattausch's mobile phone glowed in the darkness of her room before dawn on a Saturday, waking her up much earlier than expected.

As she read the incoming text, Mattausch realized that her friend, her wingman, was in trouble. Mattausch's actions over the next few hours -- rushing to her friend's side, consoling her and getting her help -- saved her friend from harming herself.

One thing Mattausch never expected as a result of those actions was a coin from the Air Force's top enlisted leader, Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Roy, during a visit here this week.
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Everywhere you look, people are tapping, talking and swiping away at smartphones and tablets. Rapidly-emerging technologies give users information immediately, and these super machines fit easily in the palm of your hand.

The Air Force is planning to implement these high-tech handhelds into daily operations and, in preparation, the Air Force C2 Integration Center kicked off the Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment here Jan. 13.

Dubbed Unified Communications I, the goal is to determine commercial cellular carriers' ability to provide sufficient service to support the Air Force's mission sets.
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A group of seven Afghan officers continued their journey to earn pilot wings by passing their first flight screening course Feb. 2 at Shindand Air Base, Afghanistan.

The officers are attending the first undergraduate pilot training held exclusively inside Afghanistan in more than 30 years. The flight screening course consisted of 22 flights in a Cessna 182, nine simulator flights and 25 hours of academics. The last flight in the course was a supervised solo flight where the students were in full control of the aircraft on the mission.
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Air National Guardsmen from the 129th Rescue Wing here performed a rescue mission 200 miles off the coast of California on Feb. 4.

Responding to a call from the Eleventh District Coast Guard at Alameda, Calif., pararescuemen, two HH-60G Pave Hawk rescue helicopters and one MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft departed here mid-morning and were on scene by noon.

The team provided medical assistance to a 54-year-old male who had suffered stroke-like symptoms aboard the cargo ship MSC Beijing. Guardsmen performed a medical evacuation, taking the patient to the San Jose Regional Medical Center in San Jose, Calif.
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A man who was shunned because of his race during his four years at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., back in the early 1930s would go on to become the first African-American general in the U.S. Air Force.

Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. was born in 1912 to Benjamin O. Davis, Sr., an Army officer who would go on to become the Army's first African-American general.

When the younger Davis went on a flight as a teenager with a barnstorming pilot in Washington, D.C., he became hooked on flying. But it would be another 16 years before he would pin on his pilot wings.
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The Army wants Soldier input about a potential upgrade to the Army's physical fitness uniform.

Just days before Super Bowl XLVI, Jim McMahon, the retired NFL, two-time Super Bowl champ, hosted the Fourth Annual Swang N' Super Bowl Bash at the historic Rathskeller where charity donations from NFL players and celebrities were raised to benefit wounded warriors.

For the first time in 21 years, the All-Army Boxing Team lost its stranglehold on gold Feb. 3 at the 2012 Armed Forces Boxing Championships. Two Soldiers won their division, but the Marine Corps took home the team title.

Afghan National Security Forces, working aside American soldiers and U.S. and Afghan civilians, conducted customs inspections on vehicles and paperwork outside Kandahar district's Bagh-e-Pol Jan. 30, 2012.

U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond T. Odierno met with 1st Infantry Division leaders following the completion of Unified Endeavor 12-01.

More than 60 Army Reserve Soldiers attended a meet-and-greet with a local member of the Second World War's famed Tuskegee Airmen, Jan. 27, 2012, at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J.

The U. S. Army Corps of Engineers Afghanistan Engineering District-South continued to meet its contracting and construction goals set for fiscal year 2012 during January. The South District exceeded first quarter goals and is on track to meet the second quarter goals as well.

Subject matter experts from across the Army, combatant commands, Department of State, allied nations, academia and think tanks will meet in Potomac, Md., to examine "How the Army Builds Partners and Capacity to Prevent, Shape and Win," the latest Unified Quest 2012 seminar, Feb. 7-10, 2012.

President Barack Obama has nominated Lt. Gen. Janet C. Wolfenbarger to the rank of general and commander of Air Force Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, potentially making her the Air Force's first female four-star general, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta announced.

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will honor Iraq War veterans and their families during a dinner at the White House later this month, White House officials announced today.

Future miltary working dogs destined to train at the Defense Department's Military Working Dog Breeding Program on Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, first enjoy several months of love with local volunteer foster care families.

Armed attacks by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime that have killed and wounded thousands of citizens since last January are "utterly deplorable," Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said.

Super Bowl festivities were in full swing at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, as hundreds of wounded warriors, their families and big-name celebrities gathered recently for the big game.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey's just-released Strategic Direction to the Joint Force outlines how the U.S. military will transition to a more efficient fighting force to confront present and future threats.

A new American Forces Press Service special report focuses on support for military families.

U.S. Marine Corps Gen. John R. Allen, International Security Assistance Force commander, said he finds a United Nations report that notes a decline in coalition-related civilian casualties "promising, but there is more work to be done."

An International Security Assistance Force helicopter crew survived after their aircraft crashed in eastern Afghanistan.

Culinary specialist Navy Seaman Apprentice Justin Cramer said his chef's training in Santa Barbara, Calif., will enable him to improve the food for the crew aboard the nuclear submarine USS California.

A recently published rule modifies the way major defense contractors report to the Defense Department on their independent research and development projects enhances communication between government and industry.

With seasonal influenza in Germany set to peak in February, it's not too late for people to get a flu shot.

U.S. Army Soldiers assisted with a "sealift drill" during a large-scale Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief Exercise Feb. 3, 2012, that was coordinated by the Japanese government and included participation from more than 10,000 people.

The XVIII Airborne Corps commanding general and command sergeant major, subordinate division commanders and more than 100 distinguished guests attended the XVIII Airborne Corps' Welcome Home Return Ceremony on Fort Bragg, N.C., Feb. 2, 2012.

The U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command has initiated steps to evaluate a new bioelectric bandage.

Sailors and Marines from the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), aboard amphibious dock landing ship USS Whidbey Island (LSD 41) returned to the United States following a 10 1/2-month deployment when it pulled into Morehead City, N.C., Feb. 4.

The first all-Air Force Critical Care Air Transport and Aero-medical Evacuation Team to fly with the only fixed wing aircraft dedicated to the medical evacuation mission in Afghanistan completed its first successful mission Jan. 13 and continues saving lives.

The CCAT/AE team flies with the 76th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron, who provide medical or casualty evacuation for U.S. and coalition forces, Afghan National Security Forces and local nationals in all of the Regional Commands in Afghanistan. They can reach almost any airfield in Afghanistan in an hour and a half from their home base in Helmand Province.
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"As soon as I got up there, I knew absolutely this is what I wanted to do," said Air Force pioneer Roy LaGrone of his journey from young passenger aboard a Ford Trimotor plane to original Tuskegee Airman pilot turned prolific artist.

As one of many African Americans of his era fighting against the axis overseas and against racial prejudice in the U.S. armed forces, Lagrone trail-blazed from cockpit to canvas after his honorable discharge in 1946.

He studied fine art and drawing at the Pratt Institute in New York, jumpstarting a career that encompassed art direction, book jacket and album cover design and, in 1961, acceptance by the prestigious New York Society of Illustrators as an artist member.
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Army Brig. Gen. Terence J. Hildner, who commanded the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), died of apparent natural causes Feb. 3 in Kabul, Afghanistan, according to Fort Hood, Texas, officials.

House Armed Services Committee leaders and other senior guests visited the USS Enterprise at sea in the Atlantic Ocean as the 50-year-old nuclear aircraft carrier prepared to participate in the Bold Alligator 2012 naval amphibious operations exercise.

In wartime and peacetime, the total force construct is virtually seamless, with Guardsmen and Reserve service members who are indistinguishable from their active-component peers. Our recent air operations in Libya are but the latest example.

The ability of our Guardsmen and Reservists to deploy on short notice and seamlessly integrate with the active force is unique and was absolutely vital in Libya. One critical reason the total force works so well in the Air Force is that many Guardsmen and Reservists are subject matter experts who work in related fields -- such as pilots and aircraft mechanics -- in their civilian jobs.
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Inspired by the achievements of Bessie Coleman during the early days of aviation, Willa Brown would go on to have an impact on African-American involvement that would lead to the creation of the famed all-African-American "Tuskegee Airmen" combat flying squadrons during World War II.

As a young high school teacher in Gary, Ind., and later as a social worker in Chicago, Willa Brown felt that her talents were being wasted. She sought greater challenges and adventures in life, especially if they could be found outside the limited career fields normally open to African Americans.
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At the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta called for European nations to match the United States' vote of confidence in the transatlantic partnership, through investment in common defense and commitment to a long-term solution in Afghanistan.

The Secretary of Defense visited Ramstein Air Base, Germany, Feb. 3, to show his appreciation for the dedicated and hard-working service members who ensure wounded warriors receive world-class care.

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta started his visit at the Contingency Aeromedical Staging Facility here, where in front of more than 100 Airmen, reporters and commanders, he delivered a heartfelt speech on his appreciation for the job of caring for wounded service members.

"Continue to do what you do best, which is to take these lives (of wounded servicemembers) and give them a new life so they can be with their family," said Panetta, the 23rd defense secretary. "I deeply appreciate what all of you do, I can't tell you how proud we are of the service you provide."
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Making changes to the Air Force is "hard, but manageable," Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley said here today.

Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton A. Schwartz detailed force structure changes that will be made in the service over the next year. The men spoke during a Pentagon news conference.

The Air Force will cut 286 aircraft over the future year's defense plan including 123 fighters, 133 mobility aircraft and 30 intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms, the secretary said. Among the fighter aircraft that will be retired are 102 A-10 close-air support aircraft. This has led to questions about whether there will be enough close-air assets left to support ground forces.
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The Air Force and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are working to establish a national partnership aimed at managing wildfires.

Officials with the USFWS, Air Force Center for Engineering and the Environment, Air Force Legal Operations Agency, Air Combat Command and 4th Fighter Wing met Jan. 12 to discuss development of a cooperative agreement for wildfire support.

The discussion included cost apportionment and agency roles and responsibilities for wildfire incidents affecting both USFWS and the Air Force. The meeting was hosted by headquarters Air Combat Command on behalf of the Air Force Civil Engineer, Maj. Gen. Timothy Byers.
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