Lackland Wins Cyber Stakes

Lackland Wins Cyber Stakes: The Air Force announced Friday morning that its preferred location to host 24th Air Force, the new numbered air force that will focus on the cyberspace mission, is Lackland AFB, Tex. Lackland was one of six prospective locations announced in January. The service decided last fall that it would place the new NAF, which has operated provisionally at Barksdale AFB, La., under Air Force Space Command, headquartered at Peterson AFB, Colo. According to the May 15 announcement, USAF completed site surveys on March 6. The surveys, said Kathleen Ferguson, deputy secretary of the Air Force for installations, used "previously approved criteria to gather information, assess capabilities, and refine initial data to thoroughly evaluate all candidate locations." Among the considerations for selecting the site was proximity to other cyber operational missions and communications bandwidth capabilities, as well as infrastructure and support capacity. The Air Force must still complete an environmental impact analysis before making the selection final, which it expect to do this summer. The service already is under fire from Nebraska elected and community officials, who felt its selection of Barksdale as the site for the new Air Force Global Strike Command was faulty, at best. Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska also was in the running for 24th AF.

5/15/2009

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Appreciative Host
"I know you're here during a difficult time. You're here through Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's. I promise you, we will find turkeys."
—Republic of Lithuania Chief of Defence Maj. Gen. Arvydas Pocius, expressing his thanks to airmen of the 493rd Fighter Squadron from RAF Lakenheath, Britain, who on Sept. 1, 2010, began a four-month stint with their F-15s in Lithuania to protect the airspace of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania under NATO's Baltic air policing mission.

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Family Momentum
"In many ways, this was what the Year of the Air Force Family was all about—connecting airmen and their families with the resources they need. I have confidence the Air Force will capitalize on this strong momentum in the years ahead by continuing to improve our family support programs and ensuring people know what resources are available."
—Suzie Schwartz, wife of USAF Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz, commenting on the accomplishments of the Year of the Air Force Family initiative that concluded in July, in a statement provided to the Daily Report, Aug. 22, 2010.