Tag Archives: chief of staff

Air Force Chief of Staff Gets Hosed

General Norton Schwartz recently took his final flight in the US Air Force, known traditionally as a “fini flight,” and he was greeted in the traditional manner, by his wife and a fire hose:

“Fini flights” have sometimes become common place, even occurring as a pilot moves from one flying assignment to another in the same airframe.  There is something special, though, to a true fini flight that caps a nearly four decade career.

General Schwartz is scheduled to retire later this year.  General Mark Welsh has been nominated to replace him.

F-16 Pilot General Welsh to be Next Air Force Chief of Staff

General Mark Welsh, the current commander of USAFE, has been nominated by the President to become the next Chief of Staff of the Air Force.  If confirmed, he would represent a return of the fighter pilot to the Chief position, which was filled for the first time by a non-fighter/bomber pilot with current Chief General Norton Schwartz.

“It’s always a great day to be an Airman … but this one is extra special for me. I came into the Air Force because I Read more

Future Fighter Pilot, AF Cross Recipient Credits Higher Power

Capt Barry Crawford was recently awarded the Air Force cross by US Air Force Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz for his actions in Afghanistan in May 2010.  The Air Force cross is second only to the Medal of Honor, and Crawford became only the third living recipient of the award since September 11, 2001.  The Air Force special tactics officer and his small team fought a pitched 14-hour battle with more than 100 Taliban insurgents — with Crawford exposing himself to fire to assist in the evacuation of wounded.

Crawford credited “someone higher Read more

Mikey Weinstein’s Friends and Allies in Military High Places, Part 3

Despite his claims the US military is overrun by Christians trying to take over the world, Michael Weinstein seems to have more public allies in military leadership positions than he has public enemies. In addition, Michael Weinstein seems to have some very well-placed friends in the US military, despite his claims he is a David fighting an institutional Goliath.

Weinstein’s “close personal…relationship” with an Air Force base’s commanding general has already been discussed, as has his unusual access to an Air Force Colonel’s non-releasable records.  It turns out Weinstein also counts the recently retired JAG of the Air Force as a cheerleader for his cause.

In fact, Weinstein’s apparently unfettered access to military leadership is so unusual Congress has been asked to investigate it.

The most interesting example of Weinstein’s friends in high places was Read more

Rep Forbes: Schwartz is “Bad” at “Defending Religious Liberty”

US Representative Randy Forbes (R-Va) appears to be holding Chief of Staff of the Air Force General Norton Schwartz personally responsible for “bowing too far to appease” critics of religious freedom within the US Air Force:

Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Va., said the logo change is the latest in an Air Force pattern that is having a chilling effect on the First Amendment rights of airmen. Forbes said he partly blames Schwartz, who he said “has been as bad as I have seen…in defending religious liberties.”

The article notes the incident to which Forbes is referring — first reported at ChristianFighterPilot.com — was the “last straw” in a year Read more

Air Force Talks Cancelling A-10. Again.

As noted previously, the US Air Force has proposed cutting a large number of A-10s from the inventory in response to the reduced Department of Defense budget.

An article at AOL Defense notes this isn’t the first time this has been proposed, and the author starts to rattle off the reasons people think the A-10 Thunderbolt II (better known as Warthog) is so great:

Two things make the A-10 especially fine at CAS: its amazing 30mm cannon which can destroy a tank with ease; and the Read more

Christian Biography Featured on Air Force Reading List

The Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General Norton Schwartz, recently published his 2012 reading list, part of the CSAF Professional Reading Program.

In the first quarter, one of the featured books is the biography of a Christian, Unbroken.

As noted in a separate review (here), Unbroken is the biography of Louis Zamperini, a World War II B-24 bombardier who also wrote an autobiography entitled Devil at My Heels (reviewed here). Unbroken focused on “survival and resilience,” leaving the “redemption” part of its subtitle to just the last few pages.  Redemption, of course, came in the form of Zamperini accepting Christ at a Billy Graham crusade in 1949, his Read more

The US Military and Christmas Around the World

A few examples of the US military’s commitment to supporting its servicemembers through their religious celebrations:

At Ali Al Salem in Kuwait, a Christmas Eve candlelight service was the “culminating event over the month of celebration.”

US Army Chief of Chaplains MajGen Donald Rutherford presided over a Christmas Eve Catholic Mass at Camp Buehring, Kuwait.

Chief of Staff of the Air Force General Norton Schwartz Read more

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