Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Roy visited Colombian military sites here Feb. 1 to 4.
He said the purpose of the visit was to reaffirm U.S. Southern Command officials' commitment to a strong nation-to-nation partnership and to explore professional military education exchange opportunities between the U.S. and Colombian air forces.
"Our two nations already have a partnership in combating narcotics trafficking, responding to natural disasters and providing humanitarian assistance to those in need," Chief Roy said while addressing 160 students at the Fuerza Aerea de Colombia Escuela de Suboficiales. "I see Colombia as a leader in promoting regional stability, and the U.S. Air Force wants to continue to be a part of that effort."
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Dr. Jill Biden and first lady Michelle Obama will campaign to raise awareness of military families, the vice president's wife told spouses of National Guard adjutants general Feb. 28.
"In the coming weeks, we are going to be launching a formal campaign," said Dr. Biden, who hosted the spouses for breakfast at the vice president's residence here.
"We're going to reach out to all Americans," she said. "Michelle and I are going to go on a tour around the country to create this mass-media awareness, so that the 99 percent of Americans who are not serving can now serve the one percent who are."
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Members of the 435th Contingency Response Group were invited by their German army counterparts from the 31st German ABN Brigade to join them on the Schϋtzenschnur range for two days of weapons and military familiarization training recently in Oldenburg, Germany.
The 31st German Airborne Brigade holds the Schϋtzenschnur qualification several times a year and invites the U.S. troops to join, but due to the operations tempo, the CRG only gets to join them about once a year, said Staff Sgt. Joseph Klimaski, a 435th CRG air operations planner.
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Forty-three student aircraft mechanics attending the Southern California Logistics Airport School of Aviation Technology, located at the former George Air Force Base, recently graduated with full certification in general aviation, powerplant and airframe maintenance. And their diplomas are paying off, as the vast majority landed jobs almost immediately.
The students spent 2,050 hours learning about physics, welding, sheet metal, mathematics, hydraulics and electrical systems in a hands-on program taught over 82 weeks.
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When I was in Baghdad in 2007, the war was in its most violent period since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
I felt ill-prepared for the chaos and death that seemed to be persistent on a daily basis. I had left the Pentagon for the desert to be the number two man in Iraq's version of the Secret Service. My mission was to keep the top seven Iraqi leaders alive. This was no small task and I had no idea that two months into the job I would become the man in charge of the entire operation.
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Airmen from the Yokota Post Office set up a contingency post office to test the agency's warfighting capabilities by using their mail contingency kit at the Yujo Community Center here Feb. 22.
Master Sgt. Victor Negron, the 374th Communications Squadron postmaster, said the purpose of the CPO is to test the functionality of the kit.
"When a kit is deployed, the post office personnel should be able to open it and begin processing parcels and (assisting) customers immediately," Sergeant Negron said.
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Air Force technicians migrated the first component of the Air Force Personnel Services website to the Defense Information Systems Agency's Enterprise Computing Center Feb. 23 to 27.
This is the first phase in centralizing all total-force personnel services and creating a single access platform for all active duty, Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve, civilian and retiree personnel, said Tim Beyland, the Air Force's assistant deputy chief of staff for manpower, personnel and services.
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The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff joined in festivities Feb. 26 celebrating the 20th anniversary of Kuwait's liberation during Operation Desert Storm and the 50th anniversary of its independence.
"I am very proud to represent the United States here in Kuwait, as Kuwaitis celebrate their independence and our combined victory in (Operation) Desert Storm," said Navy Adm. Mike Mullen.
Calling the celebration "a terrific occasion," Admiral Mullen said it "speaks to the strong bond of partnership we have with this country and our close military relationship."
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Members of the 509th Civil Engineer Squadron participated in ice rescue training here Jan. 31.
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When one C-17 Globemaster III left here Feb. 25, there were a few more loadmasters aboard than usual. A training mission was in the works, but the extra hands were put to use for a humanitarian mission that coincided with the training.
The aircrew made stops at Langley Air Force Base, Va., MacDill AFB, Fla., and Charleston AFB, S.C.
Along the way, the crew from the 732nd Airlift Squadron accomplished training requirements, picked up humanitarian cargo and delivered it to the Denton Program offices at Charleston AFB.
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