Tag Archives: air force

Reports: US Air Force Consults Michael Weinstein on Religious Policy

According to his own statements reported at a Washington Post blog, Michael Weinstein (of his self-founded Military Religious Freedom Foundation) met at the

Pentagon on April 23 where they discuss[ed] religious issues in a group that included several generals and a military chaplain.

The blog was written by Sally Quinn, who has been friendly to Weinstein’s cause in the past.  Weinstein seems inimitably pleased at the invitation, as likely any private citizen in America might be if US Air Force leadership had a personal meeting with them on “religious issues in the military.”  It’s unclear what grants Weinstein that legitimacy, beyond a spate of failed lawsuits and a series of self-published op-eds that would put even the most advanced thesaurus to shame (save the one he apparently plagiarized).

It would seem at least one senior leader was there, as the article claims one attendee was LtGen Richard Harding — The Judge Advocate General of the Air Force, who is the senior legal advisor to the Chief of Staff, General Mark Welsh:  Read more

Southern Baptist Website Blocked on Military Computers

Update: The DoD says the SBC website was blocked because malware was detected, but that connection from military servers would be restored “today.” The Southern Baptist Convention weighed in, with a caution not to rush to judgment.  Also at the Air Force Times, Christian Post, and Baptist Press.

FoxNews reports that the Southern Baptist Convention website was blocked on military servers — and the military confirmed it:

The Dept. of Defense confirmed to Fox News late Wednesday that the SBC website had been blocked — but not intentionally.

“The Department of Defense is not intentionally blocking access to this site, said Lt. Col. Damien Pickart. “We are working diligently to investigate what might be causing access issues for some of our service members and to correct the situation as quickly as possible.”

Part of the reason the situation requires “correction” is that certain servicemembers need access to the site as part of their function: namely, the many SBC chaplains in the military:

“It’s a concern for the Dept. of Defense to block the website of one of the major evangelical denominations in the country,” Crews told Fox News. “The Southern Baptist Convention has the largest number of chaplains in the military representing Southern Baptist soldiers and churches. Those chaplains need access to their denomination’s website.”

As noted the last time the issue of military internet access came up, it’s not as simple as “the government is censoring/blocking/etc” or being hostile toward Read more

US Navy Blesses the Fleet

While the US Air Force still only needs two digits to measure its age, the US Navy, or naval power in general, has been around for multiple centuries.  With that long history comes many centuries-old traditions, including the annual “Blessing of the Fleet.”  An official Navy article gives a quick note:

The Blessing of the Fleets ceremony is a centuries-old ceremony rooted in seafaring heritage around the world…

and then proceeds to focus on the “Year of Military Women.”

Another Navy site, a non-governmental organization that runs the US Navy Memorial that hosts the annual event, described the event this way:

The centuries-old “Blessing of the Fleets” ceremony is intended to safeguard crews and ships from the danger of the seas through a traditional blessing given by a clergyman Read more

SecDef Eliminates Controversial Drone Medal

After much controversy, the “Distinguished Warfare Medal,” which was purportedly designed to recognize those who contribute to the battlefront without being there, has been eliminated by the Secretary of Defense:

Just two months after its creation, Hagel said the Pentagon will replace the DWM with a device that can be attached to other previously existing medals.

The pejoratively-nicknamed “drone medal” was the subject of Read more

The Easy Thing for the Air Force not always the Right Thing

LtGen Craig Franklin is the 3rd Air Force Commander and the convening authority for the court martial of LtCol James Wilkerson, the Aviano F-16 pilot who was convicted of sexual assault at court-martial.

LtGen Franklin vacated the ruling and dismissed the case, a move that has been strongly criticized.

A few have missed the fact that Gen Franklin had to make either an affirmative or negative decision on the recommendation of the court-martial — there was no neutral position.  He chose not to approve the ruling, as was his authority, and he explained Read more

Air Force Identifies Pilot Killed in Afghanistan

The US Air Force identified the F-16 pilot killed in Afghanistan last week as Capt James Steel, a 2006 US Air Force Academy graduate and Shaw Air Force Base pilot.

The F-16 reportedly crashed while on a night final approach to Bagram Air Base after his fragged sortie.  News reports do not indicate a family, other than his father, retired MajGen Robert Steel.

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F-16 Crashes in Afghanistan, Pilot Killed

An American F-16 has reportedly crashed in Afghanistan, killing the pilot.  The ISAF release noted only that a plane had crashed, though other news sources identified the nationality as US:

A U.S. military pilot was killed when his F-16 fighter jet crashed while on a night flight over mountainous terrain in Afghanistan, officials said Thursday.

The articles seem to indicate it was not likely a result of hostile fire.

His identity has been withheld pending notification of next of kin.

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Faith an ROE for Success in the Military

Chief Master Sgt. (ret.) Walter Richardson, one of the original Tuskegee Airmen, addressed the Eglin Air Force Prayer Breakfast in February, which the article summarized as calling faith an “ROE for success.”  Chief Richardson described his reliance on faith from basic training to his deployments around the world.

“We have a manual that describes the way to be successful, the Holy Bible,” said the Tuskegee Airman…”

Holding on to two verses, one about keeping God first in all things and the other advising to trust God in all ways over your own intelligence, are the backdrop to the challenges Richardson faced as part the first group of racially integrated military members…

 Read more.

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