Wolfenbarger currently serves as the military deputy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition here and she is one of four female lieutenant generals in the Air Force.

"I am humbled and honored to have been nominated by the President to the rank of general and to serve as commander of Air Force Materiel Command. I look forward to participating in the Senate confirmation process when the time comes. At present, I remain focused on the important Air Force acquisition work I've been charged with," Wolfenbarger said.

A Beavercreek, Ohio, native, Wolfenbarger was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1980 after graduating in the first class with female cadets at the Air Force Academy.

She also holds a graduate degree in aeronautics and astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge.

The general has held several positions in the F-22 System Program Office at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio; served as the F-22 lead program element monitor at the Pentagon, and was the B-2 system program director for the Aeronautical Systems Center, Wright-Patterson AFB.

She commanded ASC's C-17 Systems Group, Mobility Systems Wing and was the service's director of the Air Force Acquisition Center of Excellence at the Pentagon, then served as director of the headquarters AFMC Intelligence and Requirements Directorate, Wright-Patterson AFB.

Prior to her current assignment, Wolfenbarger was the vice commander of AFMC, Wright-Patterson AFB.

She has been awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Air Force Achievement Medal, the National Defense Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Medal.

Wolfenbarger received her third star in December 2009 and became the Air Force's highest-ranking woman in January 2010.

(Courtesy of Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs)

According to Secretary of the Air Force, Michael Donley, the Air Force is shaping itself for future challenges by realigning Air Force assets with the Defense Department's new strategic guidance.

"We've had to adjust our force structure based on our strategic objectives and to balance capability and capacity with constrained budgets," Donley said. "We must have the right tools and enough of them to credibly deter potential adversaries and to deliver on our objectives."

The new strategic guidance requires the joint force to be capable of fighting one large scale, combined arms campaign with sufficient combat power to also deny a second adversary, and de-emphasized large-scale, prolonged stability operations. The Air Force's approach to this new strategy is to retire fighter, mobility, and ISR that are beyond those needed to meet the capacity requirements of the new defense strategic guidance.

"Where possible, we attempted to retire all aircraft of a specific type, allowing us to also divest the unique training and logistic support structure for that aircraft," Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz explained. "When that was not possible, we worked to retire the oldest aircraft first, and redistributed aircraft into effective and economical units, eliminating other units when that was most efficient. Where we retained older aircraft, we are taking steps to ensure they will remain viable into the future."

Although the U.S. has removed all combat forces from Iraq and the new strategic guidance reduces the steady state requirement for ground forces, the Air Force expects steady state rotational requirements to remain constant, or perhaps increase.

According to Schwartz this continuing combatant commander requirement for Air Force aircraft and Airmen to deploy forward was a key factor in determining the required mix between Active and Reserve component forces due to differences in sustainable deployment rates and operations tempo.

Schwartz also explained the need for reductions in the Reserve Component.

"Two decades of military end strength and force structure reductions in our active duty component has changed the mix of active duty to Reserve Component forces," Schwartz said. "We've carefully considered the mix and what the appropriate balance should be between the active and reserve components. The Reserve Component is a critical and essential part of our Total Force, but must be balanced and matched appropriately within a constrained fiscal environment."

"We're going to do this intelligently in a way that balances tempo, that keeps the right mix of assets, modern and less modern, in each of the components, and we're doing this in an inclusive fashion with Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve leadership," said Schwartz.

The Air Force is going to get smaller, and all of the components--active, guard and reserve-- are going to get smaller together, he said.

Schwartz also emphasized that we will avoid a hollow force by protecting readiness at any force level, and strengthen our integration of the Total Force team of Active Duty, Guard, and Reserve Airmen.

"To ensure an agile and ready force, we made a conscious choice not to maintain more force structure than we could afford to properly train and equip," Schwartz said. "We've taken this approach to preserve the capabilities the Nation requires of its Air Force."

The announcement specifies the force structure changes experienced by the Total Force: Air Force Active Duty, Air National Guard, and Air Force Reserve and will save the Air Force $8.7 Billion over the next five years.

For fiscal years 2014-2017 the Air Force plans to reduce 50-plus aircraft from its inventory, continue to reshape the missions between the Total Force, and increase Reserve Component participation in the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance as well as cyber missions.

Implementation of these actions will occur only after completion of appropriate environmental analyses. The Air Force is scheduled to announce related force structure manpower changes in March.

For more details about the Fiscal 2013 Force Structure changes click here.

(Mitch Gettle, Air Force Public Affairs Agency contributed to this article)

The event, hosted by the Air Force Combat Rescue Helicopter Program, gave potential contractors a glimpse into the service's plans to replace the aging HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters.

"The CRH's primary mission is to recover isolated personnel from hostile or denied territory, but it will also conduct humanitarian, civil search and rescue, disaster relief, and non-combatant evacuation missions," Maj. Ian Kemp, Chief, Combat Rescue Helicopter Requirements Branch, said.

During the three-day event, an open session was conducted with all potential companies the first day. The following two-days were dedicated to one-on-one sessions with potential prime contractors and their subcontractor teams that had previously requested a meeting.

"The 'Industry Days' focused on maintaining an open dialogue with industry and providing them with an overview of the program, to include the preliminary acquisition strategy, contract strategy and program timeline," Dave Schairbaum, Director, Rotary Wing Branch, said.

"Additional details were provided on the requirements for airworthiness, test and evaluation, training systems and product support."

The CRH program will continue to seek feedback from industry to ensure the elements of the Request for Proposal are clear and well understood, said Lt. Col. Dave Jeter, Program Manager, Combat Rescue Helicopter.

Release of a Draft RFP is planned by the end of Feb. 2012.

The three satellites -- Gambit 1 KH-7, Gambit 3 KH-8 and Hexagon KH-9 -- were among the most important U.S. photo reconnaissance systems used from the 1960s to the 1980s, and played a critical role in winning the Cold War and maintaining U.S. national security, officials said.

Passing in space high over their targets, these satellites used specially-designed film and cameras to take photos in orbit. The satellites were unmanned and unlikely to be shot down, and therefore minimized risks to military personnel while still obtaining information about areas of the world that the U.S. could not access.

Led by the National Reconnaissance Office, the Department of Defense, U.S. Air Force, Central Intelligence Agency and industry partners worked together to create these amazingly complex and capable satellites, officials said.

According to retired Air Force Gen. Bruce Carlson, the NRO director, NRO reconnaissance systems -- from planes to satellites such as Gambit and Hexagon -- have been and continue to be the foundation for global situational awareness in protection of our nation.

"Last year the NRO celebrated its 50th anniversary, and we announced the declassification of two NRO systems, Gambit and Hexagon, which were America's eyes in space and the most sophisticated satellites of their time," Carlson said. "These systems were critical for monitoring key targets in the USSR and around the globe and provided much-needed cartographic information to the DOD to produce accurate, large-scale maps."

Gambit 1 satellites were the first American high-resolution space reconnaissance systems. This first generation of Gambit vehicle flew from 1963-1967. Gambit 1 added important new close-up capability to wide-search satellites already in use and were the first satellites to feature stereo high resolution cameras.

Gambit 3 satellites improved upon the Gambit 1 by providing much better image resolution in tracking adversaries' weapons development. Gambit 3 was a long-lived system and completed 54 missions from 1966-1984. The most notable advancement from Gambit 1 to Gambit 3 was the addition of a "roll joint" between the camera module and the Agena control vehicle in the rear. This rolling joint made the satellite extremely stable as a photo platform, conserved film and increased the number of targets photographed. In addition, new super-thin photographic film allowed the vehicle to carry more film.

Hexagon satellites were the largest and last U.S. intelligence satellites to return photographic film to earth. Hexagon provided vital intelligence and mapping photos from space that allowed U.S. planners to counter Cold War threats. Between 1971 and 1984, 19 Hexagon missions imaged 877 million square miles of the earth's surface. Objects smaller than two feet across could be imaged from around 80-100 miles altitude. Analysts could search broad and wide areas for threats with Hexagon and then focus in on suspect areas with surveillance from Gambit satellites.

Both Gambit and Hexagon systems returned exposed film to earth in re-entry vehicles or "buckets" that separated from the satellite, fell through the atmosphere, and descended by parachute. Air Force aircraft were assigned to pluck the buckets from the sky at around 15,000 feet.

Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Jack Hudson, the director of the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, said the three satellites are a great addition for the Air Force's national museum because the Air Force played a key role in space reconnaissance from the beginning.

"Gambit 1, Gambit 3 and Hexagon satellites are significant and rare artifacts, which will enable us to better present the story of Air Force operations in space," Hudson said. "The Air Force has provided launch, tracking, control and range safety services for reconnaissance satellites throughout the entire Cold War, and it continues these activities today."

To commemorate the event, Hudson presented Carlson with a painting of the Hexagon satellite by nationally recognized artist and Dayton, Ohio, resident Dr. Richard Black, which was commissioned by the Air Force Museum Foundation.

Eventually, the satellites will be placed in the museum's planned fourth building, which will house the Space Gallery, Presidential Aircraft Gallery and Global Reach Gallery.

The National Museum of the United States Air Force is located on Springfield Street, six miles northeast of downtown Dayton. It is open seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day). Admission and parking are free.

Lt. Gen. William T. Lord, the Air Force chief of warfighting integration and chief information officer, presented CyberVision 2020, an initiative to transform the communications and information community, during a town hall meeting here Jan. 11 sponsored by Headquarters Air Education and Training Command A6.

Lord called the transition to cyberspace operations and support a "culture shift" from traditional information assurance to mission assurance. He compared the journey of communications and information service members and civilians to a roller coaster ride.

"I used to say that the roller coaster ride was on the incline," he said. "I think the roller coaster ride you are on, whether you want to be on it or not, is at the top and it's begun to free fall. What we want to do is shape where we're going in cyber so that, one, we get there safely; two, that maybe you can enjoy the ride while we're at it; but three, that the important things we have always done don't get lost on the ride and at the same time we arrive in a new place."

A video that preceded Lord's address and slide show presentation traced the communications and information career field's evolution from its role in the U.S. Army Signal Corps before World War I to cyberspace today. Now effects can be achieved "on the battlefield with nonkinetic tools" through five core competencies: cyberspace operation, knowledge, cyberspace operation support, warfighting integration and cyberspace governance.

Lord said the Air Force is "at that aspect of cyber between World War I and World War II."

"We figured out that we can use it for other things," he said, just as airplanes were later used "for other things than just moving information."

Lord said the technology that is embraced by young people plays an important role in the Air Force's cyber mission.

"Great new capability comes from some of those new devices," he said. "We have to be able to figure out how to deliver that capability. You've got to deliver it fast, and we also have to deliver it securely, and sometimes those are in direct confrontation with one another."

Lord said the tools used in the communications and information career field are already at play in the operational realm -- on the flightline, where fiber optics can be found in maintenance bays, and in the aerial battle ground, where sophisticated devices such as the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node employed on airplanes are important to Army ground combat maneuver units.

"We're going to be at wars that have maybe more capable platforms, but not as many of them," he said. "You all are part of the community that ties that stuff together, that requires you to know some other skills that perhaps we haven't paid as much attention to in the past as we go forward in the future."

Lord said Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta's recent remarks on the future of the military in an age of budget cuts and manpower reductions underscored the importance of technology and the need to excel in cyberspace.

Cyberspace operations and support are such a priority, he noted, that the field now has its own four-star advocate, Gen. William L. Shelton, Air Force Space Command commander, at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo.

"How cool is it that for the first time ever, we have a four-star operator who is the champion of this business?" he said.

Lord said the cyber mission faces challenges as the Air Force "gets a little smaller in the future."

"You have an environment where we have to tie innovation together that we never thought about how to do in the past or modernize that which hasn't been modernized for 30 or 40 years," he said.

The initial steps in the transformation are being taken by the air staff and the Air Force Space Command, Lord said.

"There's a couple of hundred action items that are being assigned, and that work is being staffed now to get after how we get from where we were to where we're going," he said.

Lord, who also answered questions from the audience, said communications and information professionals will need the "three C's: courage, competence and creativity." He urged them to innovate, a "wonderful mantra" from Air Education and Training Command.

"You are figuring out the mechanism by which we train all our replacements," he said. "And it's one of the strengths of our Air Force. There are no dumb ideas. The only dumb idea is the one that wasn't expressed."

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz spoke to members of the World Affairs Council of Wilmington here Jan. 19, where he discussed the capabilities the Air Force contributes to the new Department of Defense strategy.

The strategy, which was announced by defense officials Jan. 5, lays out a way forward for the military to defend the United States and its national interests while reducing military spending in a responsible, balanced manner.

Schwartz said he sees the Air Force contributing to the new strategy through the service's four core contributions to the Nation's joint military portfolio: domain control; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; air mobility; and global strike.

These four contributions, which are enhanced by the Air Force's superior command and control networks, "have a proven track record of sustaining our Nation's military advantage in the face of emerging threats," he said.

"The nation has come to rely on the strategic flexibility the Air Force provides to create desired, timely and precise effects at times and places of our choosing, and your Air Force is committed to providing it, even as current combat operations wind down," Schwartz said.

While the United States will maintain its focus on the Middle East, the defense strategic guidance also calls for a rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific theater, he said.

The Air Force will continue to strengthen its long-standing partnerships in that region, such as those with Australia, the Republic of Korea, Japan, Thailand and the Philippines, and continue developing burgeoning relationships with others like India, Indonesia and Thailand, the general said.

"Through these air force partnerships, we will work to leverage the unique characteristics of airpower to support our Nation's, and mutual, strategic interests," Schwartz said.

The new defense strategy also affirms that the United States will maintain its commitments and advance its long-standing alliances in Europe, the general said.

"Working with our European allies, as well as with other global partners, we will seek to develop an enhanced, 'smart defense' approach that capitalizes on our ability to specialize, share and pool capabilities toward collective effects," Schwartz said.

In addition to strengthening interoperability with selected key global partners, Schwartz said the U.S. military will continue to increase joint interdependence, as seen in ongoing efforts on the Air-Sea Battle concept.

"As potential adversaries are pursuing strategies and investments in technical capabilities that are designed specifically to challenge our access to, and ability to maneuver in, areas where we have national interests, our Nation's advantage in establishing and maintaining air superiority, sea control, and access to forward bases is being threatened," the general said.

Air-Sea Battle will help to maintain U.S. freedom of action across the full range of missions, including non-military; enhance power projection capability in defense of U.S. and partner-nation interests; and preserve access to the global commons, Schwartz said.

Leading and pursuing all of these efforts to ensure the U.S. military's readiness in the years ahead is a dedicated team of joint service members supported by their remarkable families, he said.

"I am grateful for your support of our brave men and women in uniform, as well as of their families," Schwartz told the audience. "They have served our country nobly, and continue to serve with great distinction."

Retired Lt. Col. Luke Weathers, 90, a member of the 302nd Fighter Squadron during World War II, received full military honors including an F-16 Fighting Falcon flyover by 113th Wing, an Air National Guard unit of Washington, D.C. The ceremony coincided with the release of "Red Tails," a full-length feature film chronicling the challenges and victories of the Tuskegee Airmen.

"The Tuskegee Airmen were dedicated heroes who gave so much for this country," said Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Johnson, the 113th WG commander. "It is an honor to perform a flyover for this brave American."

With World War II veterans like the Tuskegee Airmen entering their 90s, the numbers of these living history makers are dwindling.

During a time of racial segregation in America, the Tuskegee Airmen, the U.S. Army Air Corps' first black fliers, proved they were just as qualified as their white counterparts to fly in combat.

"Along with serving their country, they changed America," said retired Chief Master Sgt. John Patterson, the national 1st vice president of Tuskegee Airmen Inc. "They made it easier for me, when I came along many years later, to come into the military and have opportunities. "

Weathers, a P-51 Mustang and P-39 Airacobra pilot, shot down two German planes in November 1944 and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions. Later, in 2007, he and 300 original Tuskegee Airmen were presented with the Congressional Gold Medal. It is one of the highest awards in the United States.

"He was a part of the Tuskegee experience," Patterson said of Weathers. "He went to the combat zone in World War II when there were no examples for blacks to look up to. These gentlemen set the bar high and gave society someone to look up to."

Along with his legacy, Weathers leaves behind his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, a host of family members and friends, and his wife, Jacqueline Moore-Weathers.

Moore-Weathers said her husband continued to encourage Airmen to reap all the benefits the military has to offer and fulfill their goals.

"He was very proud of being a part of the (Tuskegee Airmen)," she said. "He was very proud of the accomplishments they were able to make. After the war, he went about his life trying to create and participate in Tuskegee Airmen activities."

The current Air Force and Air National Guard installations under consideration are: Boise Air Terminal Airport Air Guard Station, Idaho; Holloman AFB, N.M.; Luke AFB, Ariz.; and Tucson International Airport Air Guard Station, Ariz.

"Candidate installations were identified through a deliberate process that began with a clear definition of training requirements and progressed through a screening process," said Kathleen Ferguson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Installations. "For planning purposes, the Air Force is analyzing the impacts of basing increments of 24 aircraft, from 24 to 144, depending on capacity at the candidate installations."

Luke AFB is the Air Force's preferred alternative for the pilot training center. No final decisions regarding the training center's location will be made until after the environmental impact analysis is complete.

The F-35A is a fifth-generation fighter aircraft designed with stealth, maneuverability and integrated avionics to assume multi-role missions. The Air Force views the fifth-generation aircraft integral to the future of strike aviation and to counter emerging anti-access/area denial threats.

"Our aging fourth-generation aircraft lack modern stealth technology and integrated avionics, and will become increasingly less useful against burgeoning adversary anti-access and area-denial strategies and capabilities such as air defense systems, radars, missiles, and aircraft," Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz said. "As such, we remain committed to the fifth-generation F-35, which represents the future of tactical aviation for the Air Force."

The Draft environmental impact statement for the F-35A pilot training center opens a 45-day public comment period ending March 14. The Air Force will conduct 13 public hearings at locations surrounding the potentially impacted communities to receive oral and written comments on the Draft EIS, Ferguson said.

"The Air Force is committed to planning future activities while considering environmental and community impacts and minimizing them where practical," she said. "A final decision will be reflected in a Record of Decision expected in the summer of 2012."

The Federal Aviation Administration and U. S. Marine Corps are cooperating agencies in the EIS process.

F-15E Strike Eagle #89-0487, or "#487" for short, was commissioned Nov. 13, 1990. It's the first F-15 of any type to reach 10,000 hours, despite being younger than many F-15A and F-15C models. During its service, the aircraft participated in operations Desert Storm, Deliberate Guard, Northern Watch, Southern Watch, Iraqi Freedom, and Enduring Freedom.

The accomplishment of flying more than 10,000 hours was shared by the entire 455th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. The 455th EAMXS includes the 335th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Unit and supporting units.

"It has taken more than 21 years of qualified maintenance technicians performing more than one million hours of inspections and repairs in all types of environments at home station, depot facilities,(temporary duty assignment) and (air and space expeditionary force) locations to ensure aircraft #89-0487 was available to deploy on numerous TDYs and AEFs," Chief Master Sgt. John Parrott, the 335th EAMU superintendent said. "It also took careful, timely loading and maintenance by hundreds of weapons technicians in conjunction with countless hours of repairs and inspections performed by avionics, electrical and environmental, engine, fuels, egress, and structural Airmen."

The current crew chiefs for #487 are all deployed from Seymour-Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. They agreed that good maintenance and support were critical.

"This is the squadron flag ship," said Senior Airman Eric Rock, a 455th EAMS crew chief assigned to #487. "This accomplishment definitely shows the caliber of those before us and those who are crewing it now. They are putting the best and most motivated on the team."

The #487 crew chiefs have been working with the same aircraft for the past year. Since arriving at Bagram Airfield, the high demand for the flag ship helped highlight the team cohesion needed to keep the aircraft mission ready.

"When we got here, it was at 8,800 hours," said Staff Sgt. Ryan Forsse, a 455th EAMS crew chief assigned to #487. "We put 1,200 hours on it in the past three months. During that time, this aircraft dropped 15 percent of all bombs deployed in our fleet. To keep it flying at that pace, it was very important to keep the same crew on it to get to know the aircraft."
Rock said each plane has a specific personality.

"Keeping the same crew working on it allows for the technician to see trends," Rock said. "You get to know what is going on with it, what sounds normal and what works."

The crew chiefs specifically acknowledged that all of the support units were integral in reaching the 10,000 flying hours milestone.

"When we have a problem that needs to be fixed by another shop, they come out quickly for this jet," Forsse said. "This is the squadron flag ship, so all the shops push to get this aircraft fixed, armed up and back in the air. Any time we need something, they are on it."

Lt. Col. David Moeller, the 335th Expeditionary Flying Squadron commander, is the current weapons systems officer for #487. Moeller said he fully appreciated the impact of the work done by the F-15E #487 team.

"It's not just about the hours in the sky," Moeller said. "The maintenance ability to keep this jet flying so it may support the current fight is amazing. This is 24-hours, all-weather, operations throughout the (Operation Enduring Freedom) battlespace. Maintenance, weapons, and all support by the 455th makes this possible. It was a total team effort."
In addition to the ground support, a lot of work was done in the air for #487.

"This milestone also required skilled, proficient pilots and weapons systems officers flying more than 3,500 sorties," Parrott said. "Like the crew that dropped a GBU-10 on an Iraqi Mi24 helicopter during Operation Desert Storm."

F-15E #487 is the only one of its kind to record an air-to-air kill.

As a personal tribute to history, Moeller chose to pass the honor of flying over 10,000 hours to Capt. Ryan Bodenheimer, a 335th F-15E EFS pilot, and Capt. Erin Short, a 335th EFS weapons systems officer.
"It just seemed appropriate that the longest flying F-15E be flown by the youngest flyers in the unit," he said.

Perrot summed up the significance of #487's sustained mission capability.

"It has taken 21 years of two things: pride and passion," he said. "Pride in the work completed with fellow Airmen, ultimately for the excellence of the Air Force. And passion -- regardless of the weather, obstacle or task faced, successful completion is the only goal."

Training boom operators to perform in-flight refueling requires a tanker and a receiver. An eight-hour tanker sortie cost more than $49,000 without factoring in the receiver costs. The BOWST can train boom operators for approximately $600 an hour.

"The BOWST came about because the Air Force wants to drive down the cost of training and get out of the air and on the ground to save money," said David Kramer, the CEA Systems site manager.

McConnell Air Force Base, an AMC base, fosters a culture of excellence, develops the next generation of leaders, sets and achieves goals and provides in-flight refueling anytime anywhere.

"The KC-135 BOWST we are receiving today will play a vital role in helping train our aircrews to meet our global air refueling mission," said Col. Ricky Rupp, the 22nd Air Refueling Wing commander. "The BOWST represents our continued commitment to using precious resources in order to enhance training while simultaneously cutting costs."

The BOWST system enables instructors to test students in a wide variety of scenarios while receiving real-time information on the student's progress, in a safe environment.

"What it allows us to do is recreate training actions for boom operators without spending money on fuel, maintenance or flying hours," said Mike Adams, a CEA Systems boom operator instructor. "It also allows us to focus on various student qualification requirements, emergency procedures and other predeployment actions."

McConnell AFB's BOWST is the first of 10 to be installed at other KC-135 locations Air Force wide. Standing together Lt. Col. William Stowe, the 344th Air Refueling Squadron commander, and Airman 1st Class Joshua Garrett, 350th ARS boom operator, cut the ribbon opening the BOWST for training and savings.

"Cutting the ribbon was amazing," Garrett said, "It was a great feeling to be part of it. Making the (BOWST) first contact was nothing new, but getting to do it in this system was unbelievable. They made it look very realistic."