The Department of Defense Inspector General recently issued a report of its investigation into the improper “leak” last fall of the DoD survey on the policy most often known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” (Ironically, the publicized IG report — available on a public website — is also annotated “For Official Use Only,” as was the leaked survey.)
The DoD IG appears to have come to the same conclusion as many critics of the report did last year: the statistics were creatively Continue reading
The US Air Force reported that an F-16C Fighting Falcon crashed during combat training exercises near Caliente, Nevada, on Tuesday evening. The pilot was reported “missing.”
Unfortunately, that often means the pilot was lost with the aircraft.
No names or further status have been released. The Nellis AFB video media release can be seen here.
A US Army article again highlights SPC Simranpreet Singh Lamba, the sole non-medical Sikh Soldier granted a waiver of uniform standards so he may adhere to his religious dress requirements.
The article again documents the difficulty Lamba had in having his enlistment accepted. It also repeats the prior news that Lamba has had no significant issues either with the institutional Army or with individual Soldiers, despite his (significantly) minority faith: Continue reading
A recent ceremony at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point marked the beginning of the end of an era. The first EA-6B Prowler ever delivered to the US Marines retired on June 10 off this year:
In early 1977, the Marine Corps received its first EA-6B Prowler, tail number 160432 and marked with the number 000…[at] Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, N.C. Continue reading
Want to know what Michael Weinstein and his self-founded Military Religious Freedom Foundation stand for? Ask his staff and supporters.
GodDiscussion.com, which has a close relationship with Leah Burton — one of two members of Michael Weinstein’s MRFF board — recently hosted a fundraiser for the MRFF in coordination with the Fort Bragg “Rock Beyond Belief.” They were bringing in money for three reasons, in their own words:
(1) the soliders [sic] at Ft. Bragg who face potential legal challenges in having their Rock Beyond Belief secular alternative to Frankin Graham’s Rock the Fort proselytizing concert
(2) legal representation of service members nationwide who face discriminatory “Spiritual Fitness Tests” and
(3) the general fight against Christian extremism within the Armed Forces.
It’s interesting they’d raise funds for Continue reading
Christian rock band Switchfoot visited the USS John C. Stennis at sea and played to 300 Sailors in the hangar bay:
Grammy Award-winning alternative rock band Switchfoot visited USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) and performed a concert for Sailors in the ship’s hangar bay June 9…
“It’s a great privilege to have the opportunity to meet them,” Continue reading
A recent Army article noted the continuation of a longstanding aviation tradition: conducting sorties with American flags onboard the aircraft. These “combat experienced” flags are then given to any of a variety of organizations or requesting individuals back home.
The [Army aviators] fly the flag a bit differently. They fly their flags inside an Apache attack helicopter while patrolling the skies of Iraq. Continue reading
The Journal of Faith and War has published articles on a variety of topics covering aspects of national security, leadership, God, religion, and the military.
They recently re-published the 2010 paper by Chaplain (then-LtCol) Jimmy Browning, entitled “Religious Expression or Religious Coercion: Commanders Caught in the Crossfire.” The paper was noted here last year, and is a brief but very interesting perspective on religious issues as they pertain to military leadership.
Chaplain (Col) Browning is now Deputy Commandant of the US Air Force Chaplains’ Corps College. The College is part of the joint Chaplain school at Fort Jackson, SC.
According to an official Air Force release, the US Air Force chapel community raised more than a quarter million dollars to aid the victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
In the wake of the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan March 11, members of the Air Force Chaplain Corps on 43 installations helped raise more than $257,000 toward relief efforts for victims of the disaster, officials said here June 9.
The effort began with a call from the Air Force Chief of Chaplains:
On March 15, Chaplain (Maj. Gen.) Cecil R. Richardson, the Air Force Chief of Chaplains, encouraged chapel community Airmen and their families to take designated offerings at worship services to assist the earthquake victims.
The funds went to a variety of aid organizations, including a Catholic aid group and the Billy Graham-founded Samaritan’s Purse: Continue reading
Recently, an email from an officer announcing a Bible study at Kirtland AFB was the subject of a complaint from Michael Weinstein’s Military Religious Freedom Foundation, leading to the question here, “Can a military officer advertise a Bible study?”
Some relevant quotes from the original complaint, as sent to (and publicized by) the MRFF by an enlisted Airman:
During the past 6-7 months a unit commander, who is now the Deputy Group Commander decided to send mass e-mails to the wing regarding bible study sessions. These are sessions that were led by the individual sending the e-mails…a person in a command position, clearly a conflict of interest. A lot of us expressed concern about the perception that leadership is endorsing what should clearly be a chaplain endorsed and led activity.
Just imagine the following scenario… if you were a young Airman wanting to look good for a Below the Zone package, the Deputy Group Commander is leading a bible study, a young impressionable person might Continue reading
An official news release features US Air Force Major Jaime Nordin and her attempts to balance her life as an F-16 fighter pilot and mother. While many people consider being a fighter pilot “who they are,” it seems Nordin is in transition:
“Being a mom and a fighter pilot are both equally demanding, which makes having only 24 hours in a day hard,” she said. “But more and more, I’m becoming a mom, and a fighter pilot is my trade.”
Everyone has priorities in life; having children can put a new perspective on things. For those that are curious, the article describes some of the details about female fighter pilots who get pregnant. Nordin was grounded Continue reading
The US Air Force Academy has purchased new training aircraft to replace those it has leased for more than a decade. USAFA has not purchased a training fleet since the ill-fated T-3A Firefly killed 3 cadets and 3 officers from 1995 to 1997.
The Cirrus T-53A is a single engine propeller driven aircraft and will be used in USAFA’s flight training program. The T-53 acquisition will run $6.1M for the fleet of 25. The local article also notes the aircraft is equipped with a whole-aircraft parachute.
The aircraft will be evaluated by test pilots from Edwards Air Force base before its use as a cadet trainer.
A Naval aviator reportedly ejected from his T-45 Goshawk in southern Texas. The T-45 normally carries two, but the pilot was flying solo.
As with every other mishap, the Navy will investigate and a report will be available some months from now.
Newly promoted Chaplain (Col) Jeffrey Houston was awarded the Bronze Star in a ceremony by MajGen David Perkins, commanding general of US Division North in Iraq. General Perkins did not mince words in lauding the value of Houston or Chaplains in general:
“While we may have the best gear in the world and the best training in the world, the thing that makes us special is the people,” said Perkins. “Chaplains, specifically people like Jeff, give us inner strength. That is what he has done for me, and that is what he has done throughout his military career.”
Military Chaplains serve in a unique — and essential — role within the US armed forces. Regrettably, their value is most often noticed in their absence.
(As an aside, last year General Perkins had the pleasure of a meeting with Michael Weinstein – which resulted in Weinstein saying ”see you in court.” Naturally, the threat was empty.)
A picture on the US military’s DoD Live website recently highlighted a fascinating, if often misconstrued, photo of flight:
The caption:
An F/A-18C Hornet…breaks the sound barrier Continue reading