T-38 Pilot Killed in Crash Identified | Focus on Diversity and Inclusion

Feb. 23, 2021

Edited by Amy McCullough with Brian W. Everstine and Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

A 49th Fighter Squadron pilot conducts prepares to taxi in a T-38 Talon, Feb. 7, 2020, at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi. The pilot was a participant in exercise Southern Strike. A T-38 similar to this crashed Feb. 19 near Montgomery, Ala. Air Force Photo by Airman Davis Donaldson

USAF Identifies Pilot Killed in T-38 Crash

By Brian W. Everstine

The USAF pilot killed in the Feb. 19 T-38C Talon crash near Montgomery, Ala., is 1st Lt. Scot Ames Jr., 23, the Air Force said Feb. 22. Ames and a student pilot from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force were killed when the Talon crashed near Dannelly Field as part of a multi-leg training mission originating from Columbus Air Force Base, Miss. The JASDF has not identified the student pilot yet, and the name will be provided “according to Japan’s established process,” the 14th Flying Training Wing said in a statement. Ames was an instructor pilot with the 50th Flying Training Squadron at Columbus. He was from Pekin, Ind.

Air Combat Command Issues Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan

By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

Air Combat Command is pursuing four lines of effort to enhance diversity and inclusion among its force, according to an excerpt from its newly issued Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan, obtained by Air Force Magazine on Feb. 19. The plan, which has not been publicly released, was issued the same day. “These lines of effort provide the framework for advancing diversity and inclusion and for building measures of accountability to ensure the enterprise attracts and leverages elite talent from diverse communities to compete and win for the nation,” the excerpt stated. The LOEs are also meant to give the command’s D&I professionals “a strategic outlook” to help them devise future operational plans and quantify the command’s progress and performance, it added.

People Tried to Breach Air National Guard Bases at Least 13 Times This Year

By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

As of the morning of Feb. 19, the Air National Guard had recorded 13 breaches—including attempted and successful intrusions—at its installations since the start of 2021, ANG Director Lt. Gen. Michael A. Loh told Air Force Magazine in an interview that day. However, ANG declined to disclose the locations of the breaches due to operational security concerns.

Security Forces Training Incident Prompts Investigation at Little Rock AFB

By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

The 19th Airlift Wing at Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark., launched an investigation after a 19th Security Forces Squadron Airman discharged their weapon into a classroom wall during a Feb. 14 “dry-fire training,” wing spokesperson 1st Lt. Jessica M. Cicchetto wrote in a Feb. 19 email to Air Force Magazine. “During this training event, a live round was discharged and traveled into a wall,” she wrote. “There were no injuries or fatalities reported.”

30 Years After Desert Storm: Feb. 23

In commemoration of the 30th Anniversary of Operation Desert Storm, Air Force Magazine is posting daily recollections from the six-week war, which expelled Iraq from occupied Kuwait.

Radar Sweep

Congress to Probe How Military Bases Fared During Paralyzing Winter Storms

Federal News Network

In his second term holding the gavel of the House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee, Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.) is planning an active year addressing how the military will respond to climate change, continuing oversight of military housing, and investigating the military prescription drug supply chain. In an interview with Federal News Network, Garamendi said one of his first actions this year will be to look into military installations’ response to the ice storm in Texas and surrounding states.

Air Force Wants to Harden the B-2 Bomber to Withstand an EMP Attack

Military.com

The U.S. Air Force is looking for ways to better protect its B-2 Spirit bombers from a future electromagnetic pulse, or EMP, attack, according to a solicitation posted on the government's acquisition and awards website.

2020 Vice Chief’s Challenge Winners Announced

USAF release

The 2020 Vice Chief’s Challenge "Saving Airmen Time" results were announced Feb. 22. The 15 winning submissions were selected for their innovative approach to work faster, smarter, and ability to find ways for giving Airmen back their time.

Army Invests in Air Force's THOR

Inside Defense

The Army has partnered with the Air Force Research Laboratory on its Tactical High Power Operational Responder in an effort to counter threats posed by enemy drones, the Air Force announced last week.

To Defend the High Frontier, Space Force Wants Digitally Minded Troops

SpaceNews

If fighter pilots are the rock stars of the Air Force, it could be said that software coders and app developers are the fighter jocks of the Space Force. “Software touches everything we do in the Space Force,” said 1st Lt. Jackie Smith, who runs a Space Force software boot camp whose graduates are known as the “supra coders.”

Ivey: State Welcomes Review of Space Command’s Proposed Home

The Associated Press

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Feb. 22 said she welcomes a federal review of the decision to move the Space Command headquarters from Colorado to Huntsville, saying she believes it will confirm the decision to move it to her state.

DOD Budget ‘Bloodletting’ Inches Closer to Reality

Breaking Defense

The Pentagon is at an "inflection point" in terms of how to split the military budget between the services, Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) said, a growing recognition that the budget calculus is about to change.

Getting Ready for MH-139As

Minot Daily News

It’s still a ways off yet but Minot Air Force Base is getting ready for the Air Force’s new MH-139A “Grey Wolf” helicopters to replace the Vietnam-era UH-1N Huey helicopters.

American Avenger Air Defense Systems Reportedly Spotted on a Highway Linking Iraq and Syria

The Drive

The reported appearance of the Avengers in western Iraq comes not long after a top American general warned about the threat posed by small drones.

One More Thing

Newly Released Documents Shed Light on 1983 Nuclear War Scare with Soviets

The Washington Post (Subscription Required)

The Soviet Union put fighter-bombers loaded with nuclear bombs on 24-hour alert in East Germany during a NATO nuclear weapons command exercise in November 1983, and the alert included “preparations for the immediate use of nuclear weapons,” according to newly released U.S. intelligence records that confirm a “war scare” during some of the most tense months of the Cold War.