Tag: Air Force

Top Air Force Leader Warns China Is Prepping for War ‘Specifically’ with U.S.

Ohio Star Staff

Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall gave a stark warning that China is preparing for a war that the United States has “no modern experience with” during a speech at Air and Space Forces Association’s 2023 Air, Space and Cyber Conference on Monday, according to an Air Force press release.

Kendall said that the catalyst for a war with China would likely be Taiwan and evoked Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as an example of an international war with no easy solution, according to the press release. Kendall warned in a memo penned last week that, as quickly as China’s military has advanced, the United States is “not optimized for great power competition.”

Read More

Affirmative Action Opponent Takes on Military Academy Exemption

Ohio Star Staff

The student group that defeated affirmative action in the Supreme Court is turning their attention to American military academies exempted from the ban.

The group is currently collecting experiences of students who applied to the Air Force, Army and Navy military academies.

Read More

Biden Taps Next General to Lead the Air Force

Ohio Star Staff

President Joe Biden has chosen the Air Force’s possible next top officer after tapping the current Air Force Chief of Staff to serve in the Joint Chiefs chairman’s role, the Congressional record shows.

The White House notified Congress of its intent to nominate Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin on Tuesday, the record shows, although Biden has yet to formally announce the nomination. If confirmed, Allvin would replace Gen. Charles Brown as the service’s highest-ranking military officer, but he faces hurdles amid the backlog of senior officers awaiting Senate confirmation due to a hold over a Department of Defense (DOD) abortion policy.

Read More

Air Force Embraces DEI as Recruitment Falters

The Center Square

The U.S. Air Force has become increasingly focused on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts, and critics say it is hurting recruitment.

Chief of Staff of the Air Force Charles Q. Brown has been a major backer of the DEI efforts. Brown said in the fall of 2020 that DEI was a key focal point of recruiting and a factor in promotions. The Air Force launched a Diversity and Inclusion Task Force in September 2020.

Read More

Air Force Selects 179th Airlift Wing in Mansfield, Ohio for Air National Guard’s First Cybersecurity Wing

Bradley Vasoli

Governor Mike DeWine (R-OH) this weekend welcomed an announcement by Air Force Maj. Gen. John C. Harris Jr. that the Air Force is formally designating the 179th Airlift Wing in Mansfield as the first wing of its cybersecurity mission.

The Air Force and the National Guard Bureau made the designation after analyzing the possibility for the past year. In August 2021, the Air Force publicized its assessment that the north-central Ohio wing was the frontrunner to become the initial cyberspace-mission site. The new mission will be oriented toward protecting aircraft and weaponry software systems from attacks and other risks. It will bring in 175 new high-technology staff positions which DeWine touted as an important step in making the Buckeye State a more high-profile venue for the science, mathematical, engineering and cybertechnology fields. 

Read More

Ohio Congressional Candidate Majewski Backs Up Military Record in Conversations with Bannon and Frantz

Bradley Vasoli

Ohio congressional candidate J.R. Majewski appeared on the War Room with Stephen K. Bannon and Always Right Radio with Bob Frantz this week to corroborate Majewski’s record of military service, something political opponents and media figures have recently assailed.

Majewski is a Republican Air Force veteran running to unseat 40-year U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH-9) in a district that encompasses many of the state’s northwestern and north-central communities including Toledo. The newly redrawn House district is one of five that former President Donald Trump won in 2020 but to which a Democratic incumbent seeks reelection. 

Read More

Military Subsidizes Service Members’ Grocery Bills amid Higher Prices

Admin

The U.S. Department of Defense is taking new measures to help U.S. service members deal with rising costs as inflation continues to put the pressure on Americans.

Air Force Brigadier General Pat Ryder laid out a series of changes from Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to help families deal with the recent rise in costs, particularly in food, housing and childcare.

Read More

Appeals Court Hands Air Force Class Action Plaintiffs a Win in Vaccine Mandate Lawsuit

The Center Square

A panel of three Sixth Circuit judges have denied the Air Force’s attempt to overturn class certification granted to all members of the Air Force by a federal district court judge in July. In doing so, they handed another win to roughly 10,000 airmen and women fighting against the Department of Defense’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

The appeals court judges denied an emergency motion made by the Air Force requesting it stay the class certification and injunction granted in Hunter Doster, et al. v. Hon Frank Kendall, et al., by U.S. District Judge Matthew W. McFarland of the Southern District of Ohio. In July, McFarland granted class status and issued a preliminary injunction preventing retaliation against those in the Air Force who don’t comply with the mandate as the lawsuit continues. His order remains in effect.

Read More

Air Force Diversity Festival to Include Drag Show

Admin

Joint Base Langley-Eustis will host a “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Summer Festival” on Saturday, which will reportedly include a drag show.

Joshua Kelley, whose stage name is Harpy Daniels, will headline the drag show, according to the Daily Wire. The event’s planners have advertised it as being family friendly, listing bouncy houses and face painting among the activities for children.

Read More

Federal Court Orders Air Force to Not Impose Vaccine Mandate on Coast Guard Members Who’ve Filed Religious Exemptions

The Center Square

A federal court in Ohio entered a nationwide preliminary injunction Thursday prohibiting the U.S. Air Force from enforcing its COVID-19 vaccine mandate against religious objectors.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio’s order in Doster v. Kendall remains effective until a full trial is held. It follows the temporary restraining order the court issued July 14 when it granted class action status for all Air Force plaintiffs nationwide. Class status protects all active-duty Airmen, active reserve, National Guard, Air Force Academy cadets, the Air Force Reserve Command, and Space Force members.

Read More

Judge Grants Temporary Injunction Against COVID Vax Mandate for Airmen Seeking Religious Exemption

Admin

A district court judge in Ohio granted a temporary injunction Thursday against the Air Force’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for all of the branch’s members requesting a religious exemption.

U.S. District Court Judge Matthew McFarland, of the Southern District of Ohio, granted the 14-day injunction in the case of Doster v. Kendall, giving the government seven days to respond and explain “why this Court should not grant a class-wide preliminary injunction,” according to the court order.

Read More

Biden’s Air Force Opens Strategic Tanker Contract to Airbus Less Than a Year After $4B DOJ Sanction for Hiding China Ties

Neil W. McCabe

President Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s administration opened up a significant chunk of a new Air Force tanker contract to the Leiden, Netherlands, based Airbus less than a year after the company paid a nearly $4 billion fine for corruption and despite its history of technology transfers to China.

“Airbus engaged in a multi-year and massive scheme to corruptly enhance its business interests by paying bribes in China and other countries and concealing those bribes,” said Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division in a statement released at the end of January.

“This coordinated resolution was possible thanks to the dedicated efforts of our foreign partners at the Serious Fraud Office in the United Kingdom and the PNF in France,” Benczkowski said.

Read More

California Sheriff Deputy Damon Gutzwiller Killed, Two Others Injured in Ambush-Style Attack by Air Force Sgt. Steven Carrillo

The Associated Press

A Northern California sheriff’s deputy was killed and two law enforcement officers wounded Saturday when they were ambushed with gunfire and explosives while pursuing a suspect, authorities said.

The U.S. Air Force confirmed Sunday that the suspect was an active duty sergeant stationed at Travis Air Force Base.

Read More

Coders Building Database Need Health Care Workers to Report Coronavirus Testing Sites So They Can Provide Data to Officials Battling Disease

Jason M. Reynolds

A coalition of computer coders and medical experts is looking for volunteers — including from the Volunteer State — to help provide better information on COVID-19 coronavirus testing sites.

TechCrunch reported on the one-week-old Coders Against Covid project, which is building a database of testing sites. The team of about 15 developers includes Andrew Kemendo of KesselRun, an Air Force software developer, and Dr. Jorge A. Caballero, a clinical instructor of Anesthesia at Stanford University. The goal is to inform officials tracking the disease and to better distribute the tests where they are needed.

Read More

Governor DeWine Announces Ohio Air Force Lab Will Be Site of Groundbreaking New Tech

Andrew Shirley

Gov. Mike DeWine, along with several other senior Ohio and military officials, announced Friday that Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport would be the test site for a new and revolutionary aviation system. DeWine was joined in his announcement by Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, and Major General William Cooley, Commander of the Air Force…

Read More