AirForceDad.com

This week's photo highlights feature Airmen around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.

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On Aug. 28, 1972, Steve Ritchie, then a captain, flying with his backseater Capt. Charles B. DeBellevue, shot down his fifth MiG-21 near Hanoi. This made Capt. Ritchie the first U.S. Air Force ace of the Vietnam War.  For this feat, Ritchie shared the 1972 Mackay Trophy with Capts. Jeffrey S. Feinstein and Charles B. DeBellevue.  But his most thrilling aerial dogfight took place nearly two months earlier, when he shot down two MiGs with three missiles in 1 minute, 29 seconds.

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Senior defense leaders will use a recently issued report on the National Security Personnel System when they decide what to do with the civilian personnel system this fall, a Pentagon official said here Aug. 27. 

Last spring, Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III directed that a comprehensive review of NSPS be conducted to ascertain whether the system is fair and understandable to participating employees.

The Defense Business Board's task group report issued this week recommended a "reconstruction" of the NSPS. The group was chaired by former Deputy Defense Secretary Rudy DeLeon.
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Coalition airpower integrated with ground forces in Iraq and International Security Assistance Force troops in Afghanistan during operations Aug. 26, according to Combined Air and Space Operations Center officials here.

In Afghanistan, Air Force B-1B Lancer aircraft provided armed overwatch for friendly forces near Sheykhabad. They reported an impending enemy attack on friendly helicopters and requested a show of force. The show of force, which included release of flares, was successful in deterring the enemy action.
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Italian airmen sharpened their close-air-support skills in realistic combat conditions here during their first-ever exercise appearance at Green Flag West Aug. 9 through 20.

Nearly 180 Italian airmen from four different squadrons comprised the "Reparto Autonomo Volo," or Autonomous Flying Wing, at the 549th Combat Training Squadron. Pilots, maintainers, support and joint terminal attack controllers participated in full-spectrum training integrating both U.S. Air Force and Army forces otherwise known as Green Flag West.
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Air Mobility Command Airmen showed strong support for "reinvigorating the Air Force nuclear enterprise" through a command-level no-notice inspection recently.

From Aug. 17 to 24, the AMC Inspector General officials completed a no-notice Limited Nuclear Surety Inspection, or LNSI, of the 62nd Airlift Wing at McChord Air Force Base, Wash. The wing received a "satisfactory" rating, the highest grade possible for this type of inspection. In the LNSI, AMC officials noted it's important to know the wing commander and all of the group commanders are new to the wing and weren't present during their last inspection in January.
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Officials in NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate will begin accepting scholarship applications on Sept. 1 for the 2010 academic year. The application deadline is Jan. 11, 2010.

"These scholarships are a fantastic way to support our brightest students and encourage them to finish their education, expose them to NASA's research programs and inspire them to pursue a career in aeronautics," said Jaiwon Shin, associate administrator for the Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
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An explosives ordnance disposal technician with the 437th Civil Engineer Squadron mustered the strength to brace himself and stand for the first time in three weeks Aug. 21 after an explosion turned his deployment upside down.

"I just want to take each day slowly but surely. In the next week or two I heard I could be on crutches," said Tech. Sgt. Michael Williams. "The doctors are saying I'm doing really well."

The explosion occurred when Sergeant Williams came face-to-face with an antipersonnel landmine while deployed to Afghanistan.
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Academy superintendent Lt. Gen. Mike Gould unveiled plans Aug. 27 for a major transformation and expansion of the Academy's character development efforts. 

Plans include re-designating the Center for Character Development to the Center for Character and Leadership Development, or CCLD, and relocating it into a new $29-million facility scheduled to open in late summer 2012. Construction for the new building is anticipated to begin in March 2011. 
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Airmen from the 509th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron work around the clock to ensure the B-2 Spirit is mission ready. The 509th Bomb Wing is home to 20 B-2s. The aircraft brings massive firepower to bear, in a short time, anywhere on the globe.

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