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Dr. Reina Pennington, Associate Professor of History Norwich University. The Soviet Union was the first nation to allow women pilots to fly combat missions. During World War II the Red Air Force formed three all-female units--grouped into separate fighter, dive bomber, and night bomber regiments--while also recruiting other women to fly with mostly male units. Their amazing story, fully recounted for the first time by Reina Pennington, honors a group of fearless and determined women whose exploits have not yet received the recognition they deserve. Pennington chronicles the creation, organization, and leadership of these regiments, as well as the experiences...

U.S. military academy football teams will play this weekend, despite the government shutdown. A senior defense official said Wednesday the decision affects this weekend's games only, and future games will be evaluated as events unfold. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly so spoke on condition of anonymity. Navy later confirmed its home game against Air Force in Annapolis, Md., would be played as scheduled Saturday. The game is sold out.

The grieving parents of a 19-year-old Idaho woman who died serving her country thousands of miles from home say the U.S. Air Force won't give them information about the circumstances of her death. Airman 1st Class Kelsey Sue Anderson of Orofino died June 9, 2011, at Andersen Air Force Base on the island of Guam, a U.S. territory in the Pacific Ocean 3,300 miles west of Hawaii. The military has reported she committed suicide. But Chris and Adelia Sue Anderson, her parents, filed a lawsuit last month in U.S. District Court to force the Air Force to respond to their...

WASHINGTON — Air Force Lt. Gen. Janet C. Wolfenbarger would become the highest-ranking woman officer ever to serve in the Air Force if a nomination forwarded Monday by President Barack Obama is approved by the Senate. Wolfenbarger would lead Air Force Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and become the first female four-star general in the Air Force. The command focuses on development and sustainment of weapons systems. With a yearly budget of $60 billion, it’s the largest Air Force command in terms of funding. Wolfenbarger now serves as military deputy to the Air Force’s assistant secretary for...

According to a release from Rep. Darrell Issa, (R-Calif.) his House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has scheduled new hearings into the on going Operation Fast and Furious scandal — this time they’ll be talking to ATF agents based in Mexico: “Operation Fast and Furious: The Other Side of the Border” will examine accounts of agents based in Mexico Washington DC– On Tuesday, July 26th, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will convene a hearing as part of the ongoing investigation into the Department of Justice’s Operation Fast and Furious, a tragically flawed effort that is connected to...

U.S. and British warplanes pounded Libyan targets overnight after a barrage of Tomahawk cruise missiles fired from ships in the Mediterranean Sea took out critical Libyan air defenses in the western part of the country. Four American B2 bombers dropped 16 bombs each, striking Libyan air bases and aircraft, mobile air defense units and some ground forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, a senior U.S. military official told ABC News. "The assessment is still ongoing, but all indications are that B2s were effective against the targets they struck," the official said. The attacks are the opening phase of an...

With Air Force's new drone, 'we can see everything'By Ellen Nakashima and Craig Whitlock Washington Post Staff Writers Sunday, January 2, 2011; 12:09 AM In ancient times, Gorgon was a mythical Greek creature whose unblinking eyes turned to stone those who beheld them. In modern times, Gorgon may be one of the military's most valuable new tools. This winter, the Air Force is set to deploy to Afghanistan what it says is a revolutionary airborne surveillance system called Gorgon Stare, which will be able to transmit live video images of physical movement across an entire town. The system, made up...

A program enacted in August 2009 promised military veterans attending college increased educational benefits for their time served, but, seven months later, some students at the University of Colorado have seen little or none of that money. At least 231 students at CU rely on funding from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs as part of the post-9/11 G.I. Bill, which pays a portion of tuition, fees, books and living expenses for students who served at least 90 days of active service since Sept. 11, 2001. The bill nearly doubled the benefits to military and veteran students nationwide, but CU...

When Gunnery Sgt. Marcus Hyman was told he’d get to sit down with Barack Obama on Monday, the Marine knew what he wanted to find out: What’s the president’s plan for Afghanistan? Obama didn’t go into great detail answering Hyman, the young man said after their chat, but the future of the faltering war was clearly on the president’s mind during his afternoon visit to Jacksonville Naval Air Station. (snip) Not everyone in the audience was as excited — some sailors said they were upset about being ordered to come — but for many, the speech was a unique opportunity.

Top 'terrorism suspect' freed: report LONDON (AFP) – The government has released a man it considers a top dangerous terrorist suspect from virtual house arrest, possibly to avoid disclosing secret evidence against him, a report said Monday. The unnamed man has been closely monitored and his movements severely restricted since 2006 because of his alleged links with Islamic terrorists, although he has never been charged, the Times said. His control order, which confines him to his home for 16 hours a day, was revoked last week and his electronic monitoring tag removed, despite government claims that he remains a threat,...

JERUSALEM, July 6 (Xinhua) -- The Israel Air Force (IAF) plans to partake in several aerial drills abroad later this year in a bid to train its pilots for long-range flights, reported local daily The Jerusalem Post on Monday. The air force will send F-16C fighter jets to the U.S. state of Nevada later this month for the Red Flag exercise at the Nellis Air Force Base, and meanwhile dispatch several C-130 Hercules transport aircraft to participate in the Rodeo 2009 competition at the McChord Air Force Base in the state of Washington, said the report. In addition, the IAF...

Crew flies injured Iraqi soldiers to Erbil for care. By 3rd Medical Command Public Affairs CAMP VICTORY, Iraq, May 16, 2007 — The Iraqi Air Force continues to display its growing capabilities by performing another first – a double-patient transfer. Not two months after the Iraqi Air Force conducted its first aeromedical transfer, a policeman transported from the 28th Combat Support Hospital to an Iraqi treatment facility, two patients were transported together from the 28th’s hospital to an Iraqi medical facility in Erbil, May 8. This is the second all Iraqi aeromedical transfer to move patients from the 28th CSH...

WASHINGTON, April 4, 2007 – An Air Force logistics officer essentially traded in his blue uniform for Army green during his stint as a convoy commander in Afghanistan. Air Force Capt. Michael J. Frasco poses for a photo in the Pentagon. Defense Dept. photo by Gerry J. Gilmore  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Air Force Capt. Michael J. Frasco, 35, who hails from Albuquerque, N.M., volunteered to be a supply convoy commander during a tour in Afghanistan in 2006, a job traditionally performed by an Army officer. He also served as a trainer for the Afghan National Army....

Boeing Co. is negotiating the sale of 12 Chinook CH-47 military transport helicopters to India's air force, a senior company official said Friday. The cost of the aircraft plus support and training programs totals about US$600 million, said Dean Millsap, the Asia Pacific director of Boeing Integrated Business Development, a division of Chicago-based Boeing. "We have held unofficial meetings with the Indian Air Force officials, but haven't got anything in writing," Millsap said told reporters in Bangalore, according to Dow Jones newswires. Millsap, speaking on the sidelines of an air show in the southern Indian city of Bangalore, said the...

IAF Commander Maj.-Gen. Eliezer Shkedy said on Sunday that the IAF had only used "a small proportion of its fire power" in its attacks on Lebanon, adding that it was the IDF's prerogative how much of its military capability to use and warning that "the other side should consider all its alternatives." "Our fighter jets have made over 1000 flights and our attack helicopters over 350," ... "The results of our operations have been good and the targeting precise..." The IAF commander explained that Hizbullah infrastructure had been targeted in the north, south and center of Lebanon. Shkedy added that...

WASHINGTON (ARMY NEWS SERVICE, March 23, 2006) – Army and Air Force officials announced March 17 that a new Joint Cargo Aircraft, designed to enhance the combat readiness of both services, will be developed by a combined team. Fielding of the new aircraft is expected within two years. The Request for Proposals was released March 17 after the Acquisition Strategy Report was signed that morning, according to Pentagon officials. A Joint Program Office, comprised of personnel from both branches of service, will open Oct. 1 in Huntsville, Ala., with the Army taking the lead. “This is a big day for...

In the bedroom of a dingy apartment on Tucson's South Side, Air Force Master Sgt. Jim Johnston snapped on a pair of latex gloves and gently probed the rib cage of a 40-year-old woman weeping with pain. She'd been sick for days. Her fever was 104. Her only medicine: Nyquil. "Where does it hurt?," Johnston asked. "My chest," the woman panted, crying out as a coughing spasm overtook her. An hour later, Johnston is on another city street, trying to make sense of a babbling 21-year-old woman who seems strung out ---

/20/2006 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- Six thousand miles away from her native country of China, Yi Liu knew she wanted to make a name for herself in America. She grew up in a small copper mining town in the province of Canton and immigrated to the United States in 2003. At the age of 21, she lived with her family in a “box-sized” apartment in San Francisco’s Chinatown. “I was thrilled to be in the United States,” said Airman 1st Class Yi Liu, who is assigned to the 379th Expeditionary Services Squadron “Grab and Go” flight kitchen. “We waited...

PARIS, Nov 23 (AFP) - The European aircraft manufacturer Airbus will deliver A380 superjumbo airliners to Air France a year late on April 1, 2008, Air France president Jean-Cyril Spinetta said on Wednesday outside a press conference on the airline's six-month results. Spinetta had warned at a general meeting of shareholders in Air France-KLM on July 12 that the A380 would be delivered six months later than the planned date of April 1, 2007. The airline's head of finance, Philippe Calavia, said on Wednesday: "Airbus has had problems in respecting its planning. "We have agreed between us simply to delay...