Boats will be targets

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- If you see a lot of boats in Choctawhatchee Bay in northwest Florida in early February, they may be targets for jet fighters. Starting on Feb. 5, the 96th Operations Group will be using about 30 boats as visual targets for F-15s and F-16s, but no weapons will be used. Similar operations will be conducted the week of Feb. 11-15. Operations the week of Feb. 11 will also be conducted in the Gulf of Mexico, south of Destin. Testing will occur between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. each day. (Source: 96th Test Wing, 01/28/13)

100th F-35 on production line

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Assembly of the 100th Lockheed Martin F-35 is under way at the F-35 production facility in Fort Worth. Technicians are in the final phase of building the wings that will be installed on the 100th aircraft, AF-41. The conventional takeoff and landing variant, is one of 88 F-35s in various stages of completion at Fort Worth and Marietta, Ga., and supplier locations worldwide. The jet will be delivered to the U.S. Air Force at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz. (Source: Lockheed Martin, 01/30/13) Gulf Coast note: Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the F-35 training center for all branches of the military and allied nations.

Donovan eyed for Pensacola airport

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Mayor Ashton Hayward has nominated the director of the Okaloosa County Airports System to head Pensacola International Airport. Hayward will ask the City Council to confirm Gregory Donovan at its Feb. 11 meeting. Donovan, who was the assistant director of the Pensacola airport for seven years prior to taking his current position in Okaloosa County, has submitted his resignation and his last day on the job will be March 1. (Sources: Pensacola News Journal, 01/29/13, Northwest Florida Daily News, 01/30/13)

The drone retrievers

TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- When there are tall waves, mean currents and high winds, the last thing anyone wants to do is jump into open water. But for the commercial divers aboard one of three 82nd Aerial Targets Squadron's Missile Retrievers, it's part of the job. The 82nd ATRS, a Tyndall tenant unit, is the only subscale aerial target provider in the Air Force, housing nearly 30 BQM-167A remote-controlled drones, which are water and land recoverable. The drones are a means to test and evaluate air-to-air weapons, the effectiveness of counter measures during sorties and the effectiveness of the weapons systems. The 82nd ATRS is a geographically separated unit of the 53rd Wing headquartered at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. (Source: 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs, 01/25/13) Related, Eglin seeks marine robots

Developer to build hangar

CRESTVIEW, Fla. -- A Pensacola developer plans to build a huge hangar at Bob Sikes Airport in hopes of attracting an aerospace company. Dan Gilmore, owner of RONDAN Investments, will lease land from the county to build a 137,000-square-foot hangar on John Givens Road. He said he is certain an aerospace company will lease the hangar, and he's talking to multiple aerospace companies about it. Mike Stenson, deputy airport director, said he gets calls all the time from large aerospace companies interested in a presence at Bob Sikes, and the number one question is if they have available hangar space. Right now the answer is no. Stenson said the planned hangar would be large enough to hold three C-130s. (Source: Northwest Florida Daily News, 01/28/13) The general aviation airport, with an 8,005-foot runway, is 1,020 acres and adjacent to the 360-acre Okaloosa-Crestview Industrial Airpark.

F-35B to fly again soon

A fuel line issue that grounded F-35Bs has been isolated and the jets will resume flights soon, according to Defense News. The investigation determined the fueldraulic line, which uses fuel rather than hydraulic fluid to move the actuator for the exhaust system, was improperly crimped. The short-takeoff and landing variant of the F-35 was grounded after a Jan. 16 test flight at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The conventional and carrier variants were not affected. (Source: Defense News, 01/28/13) Eglin is home of the F-35 training center.

AF Reserve to begin changes

Air Force Reserve Command officials are moving forward with force structure changes authorized by the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2013. Among other things, the legislation authorizes new Air Force Reserve intelligence squadrons at four installations, including Hurlburt Field in Northwest Florida, slated to get the 28th Intelligence Squadron. Also in this region, Barksdale Air Force Base, La., will inactivate the 917th Fighter Group and retire 24 A-10C Thunderbolt IIs and transfer three A-10Cs to Whiteman AFB, Mo. (Source: AFNS, 01/25/13)

ST Aerospace decision close

PENSACOLA, Fla. – A decision on Singapore-based ST Aerospace's proposed expansion is nearing. A Pensacola News Journal columnist wrote that should Pensacola land the expansion it would mean hundreds of aerospace jobs at a planned aerospace industrial park at Pensacola International Airport. Mayor Ashton Hayward told the board that the Florida Department of Transportation offered $14 million for property acquisition at the airport land the company, which provides maintenance services. Hayward said he spoke with a top ST executive recently at the company's Mobile, Ala., headquarters and was told word should come through in the next week or two. (Source: Pensacola News Journal, 01/24/13) Previous

Female aviators help museum

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Four female aviators visited Naval Air Station Pensacola to help the National Naval Aviation Museum gather material for an exhibit honoring the contributions women have made to naval aviation since World War I. The four, who flew in aboard an E-2C Hawkeye patrol plane, provided video interviews for the exhibit. The crew is part of the Carrier Airborne Early Warning System of the USS Carl Vinson. Women have been flying in combat positions in the Navy since the 1990s. The exhibit will open later this year. (Sources: Pensacola News Journal, AL.com story, 01/25/12)

Mobile and Airbus deal cited

The Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce's work landing the $600 million Airbus A320 assembly facility at Brookley Aeroplex is one of four honorable mentions in Business Facilities' 2012 Economic Development Deal of the Year competition. It said the deal "cements Alabama's status as an up-and-coming aerospace manufacturing giant," said Business Facilities Editor in Chief Jack Rogers. The plant is expected to eventually employ 1,000 people. (Source: Mobile Press Register, 01/24/13)

1st AF getting new commander

Air Force Maj. Gen. William H. Etter was nominated for appointment to lieutenant general and for assignment as commander, First Air Force (Air Force North) and commander, Continental United States North American Aerospace Defense Command Region, Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. Etter is currently serving as assistant to the chairman, joint chiefs of staff for National Guard matters, Joint Staff, Pentagon, Washington, D.C. (Source: DoD, 01/24/13)

Officers tapped for promotions

Three Air Force officers at Hurlburt Field, Fla., were among 60 officers nominated for promotions today. Col. James C. Slife, commander of the 1st Special Operations Wing, Air Force Special Operations Command, was nominated for appointment to brigadier general. Brig. Gen. Marshall B. Webb, director, plans, programs, requirements and assessments, headquarters Air Force Special Operations Command, was nominated for appointment to major general. Brig. Gen. Timothy J. Leahy, commander of the 23rd Air Force, director of operations Air Force Special Operations Command, was nominated for appointment to major general. (Source: DoD, 01/24/13)

Contract: CSC, $28.5M

CSC Applied Technologies LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded a $28,470,903 contract modification for Keesler Air Force Base Operatons Support Services. The location of performance is Keesler AFB, Miss. Work is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, 2014. The contracting activity is 81 CONS/LGCM, Keesler Air Force Base. (Source: DoD, 01/24/13)

Airport questions flight rates

PANAMA CITY, Fla. -- Declines in passenger traffic at Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport have prompted officials to conduct price evaluations to see if rates are competitive. December was the fourth straight month of passenger decreases, with nearly a 13 percent decline over the previous year. November also saw a double-digit decline, with traffic down 11 percent from November 2011. The decreases have led to discussions with pricing groups from the airport's major air carriers, Delta and Southwest, to make sure prices are comparable to those at airports in Tallahassee, Okaloosa County and Pensacola. (Source: Panama City News Herald, 01/23/13)

Spirit expands service

NEW ORLEANS -- Spirit Airlines begins its nonstop daily service Thursday between New Orleans Louis Armstrong International Airport and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Spirit said in July it would begin the service with hopes of expanding to twice-daily flights in June. Based in Miramar, Fla., with a fleet of 35 Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft, Spirit operates flights to 49 destinations in the United States, Caribbean, Bahamas and Latin America. (Source: New Orleans Times-Picayune, 01/23/13)

AF testing airborne router

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- Tests were completed this month on a flying wireless router with near instantaneous communications. The biggest difference between the router in homes and the new flying router is the Air Force's version is attached to a 30mm Gatling gun. The flying router is a new software upgrade called Net-T or network tactical for the LITENING and Sniper advanced targeting pods for all legacy fighters and the B-1. Developmental tests began in October. The 40th Flight Test Squadron tested the software's capability to allow groups of ground forces to communicate with each other via Remotely Operated Video Enhanced Receiver-5, a small arm-mounted touchscreen device the size of an iPad-mini. The Net-T pod capability allows units with ROVER-5s to communicate directly with each other using the aircraft to route signals, so long as the troops are in line-of-sight with the aircraft. The 40th FLTS will send the study to Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, by mid-February. The software upgrade will return to Eglin to begin the operational testing with the 53rd Wing. The flying router could be transmitting data in operational aircraft by 2014. (Source: Team Eglin Public Affairs, 01/18/13)

Lab gets accreditation

Technician analyzes patient's chromosomes.
Air Force photo

KEESER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Keesler's Air Force Medical Genetics Laboratory has received accreditation from the College of American Pathologists. The CAP officially notified the genetics laboratory staff of the accreditation in December following an on-site inspection conducted in November. Keesler operates the only genetics center -- combined comprehensive genetics clinic and laboratory -- in the Department of Defense. The Keesler genetics laboratory, an element of the 81st Medical Operations Squadron, is one of more than 7,000 CAP-accredited facilities worldwide. (Source: 81st Medical Group Public Affairs, 01/23/13)

SDB fit check completed

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- The U.S. Air Force and Raytheon successfully completed a fit check of the GBU-53/B Small Diameter Bomb II on the F-35. During the test, four SDB II shapes were loaded into an F-35 weapon bay alongside an Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile. Sweeps of the inboard and outboard bay doors verified there was adequate clearance between the two weapons. SDB II is designed to be carried by a host of 4th- and 5th-generation aircraft. SDB II can hit targets from a range of greater than 40 nautical miles. (Source: Raytheon, 01/22/13)

F-35B grounded for now

A failure in a fuel line that caused an aborted takeoff last week has resulted in the grounding of the Marine Corps F-35B. Flights are suspended pending completion of an engineering investigation. The aborted takeoff was at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., home of the F-35 training center. The grounding does not affect the Air Force and Navy variants. (Sources: multiple, including Reuters, Defense News, 01/18/13, Havelock News, WEAR-TV, 01/21/13)

AJ26 has successful test

Aerojet, a GenCorp company, said its AJ26 engine successfully completed a hot fire test Friday evening at NASA's Stennis Space Center. Orbital Sciences Corp., Aerojet and NASA monitored the full-duration test in support of the Antares rocket program. It was the eleventh AJ26 engine to be tested at Stennis. Following review of the test data, the AJ26 will be configured for flight and shipped to NASA's Wallops Flight Facility for integration with Orbital's Antares rocket and will provide boost for the first stage of the Antares rocket. (Source: Globe Newswire, 01/18/13)