Healing touch

Senior Airman Daren Marshall (left to right), Tech. Sgt. Jeffrey Eller and Army Capt. Elizabeth Williams help align military working dog Zack on a table before receiving a chest X-ray Dec. 13 at an air base in Southwest Asia. Zack received an X-ray to see how his pneumonia has cleared since his last visit. Captain Williams is a 218th Medical Detachment Veterinarian. Sergeant Eller is an X-ray technician assigned to the 386th Expeditionary Medical Group and is deployed from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Airman Marshall is a military dog handler assigned to the 386th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron and is deployed from F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Raheem Moore)

Air Force bands

Master Sgt. Robert Green, percussionist with the Air Force Band of Flight Wright Brass Quintet, performs a drum solo with the help of a local boy at the Douda School while deployed to Djibouti, Africa. Air Force band members have been deploying to U.S. Central Command areas of responsibility since 2004 to entertain troops and, more recently, to help in humanitarian and outreach efforts in places like Kyrgyzstan and Kenya. Sergeant Green and the Band of Flight are part of Air Force Materiel Command. The Band of Flight is located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. (Air Force photo by 2nd Lt. Jason Plosch)

Getting in the spirit

Senior Airman Zachariah Lopez and Capt. Charise Fuller pull a holiday card out of a pickup truck at Joint Base Balad, Iraq, Dec. 9. The card is an entry in the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing's holiday greeting card contest, themed "Sounds of the Season." A panel of judges will select the best card at a holiday variety show on Christmas Day. Lopez, a 332nd AEW Public Affairs Office videographer, is deployed from Charleston Air Force Base, S.C. Fuller, the 332nd AEW Protocol Office deputy chief, is deployed from Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Erik Gudmundson)

Squad ammo load

Tech. Sgt. Jason Grant, unit deployment manager for the 88th Security Forces Squadron, loads a shipping container with small arms ammunition at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base weapons storage area Dec. 5. Base Airmen participated in a crisis response deployment exercise to send personnel, ammo and equipment to an air base in the U.S. Central Command theater. The exercise is part of base preparations for the 2009 Operational Readiness Inspection. (U.S. Air Force photo/William Pugh)

Ammo load

Munitions specialist Airman 1st Class Kyle Johnson and Bill Crenshaw, chief of the 88th Operations Support Squadron Munitions Flight, prepare pallets of small arms ammo for shipment Dec. 5 inside the Weapons Storage Area at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Base Airmen participated in a crisis response deployment exercise which simulated the deployment of more than 200 personnel and nearly 60 tons of cargo to an air base in Asia. The exercise is part of base preparations for the 2009 Operational Readiness Inspection. (U.S. Air Force photo/Ben Strasser)

Mobility bag warehouse

Lt. Col. Cheryl Lewis, 88th Communications Squadron commander, checks out her chemical and biological protective gear inside the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base mobility bag warehouse Dec. 8. More than 200 base Airmen participated in the exercise which simulated a mass deployment to an air base in Asia. The exercise is part of base preparations for the 2009 Operational Readiness Inspection (U.S. Air Force photo/Al Bright)

AFMC change of command

Gen. Donald J. Hoffman is congratulated after assuming command of the Air Force Materiel Command Nov. 21 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Air Force chief of staff Gen. Norton Schwartz (left) presided over the ceremony during which Hoffman succeeded Gen. Bruce Carlson (right), who served as AFMC commander since August 2005. The change of command was held inside the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo/Ben Strasser)

AFMC change of command

A B-52 Stratofortress stands silent guard behind the crowd gathered for a change of command ceremony Nov. 21 in the Modern Flight Gallery of the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The ceremony, which is steeped in military history and tradition, marked the passing of leadership of Air Force Materiel Command from Gen. Bruce Carlson to Gen. Donald Hoffman. As AFMC commander, is responsible for providing the acquisition management services and logistics support required to develop, procure and sustain Air Force weapon systems. (U.S. Air Force photo/Ben Strasser)

Formal retreat honors retiring AFMC commander

Tech. Sgt. James Carr, the noncommissioned officer in charge for the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Honor Guard, presents the American flag to Gen. Bruce Carlson during a formal retreat ceremony in front of Headquarters Air Force Materiel Command Nov. 18. Hundreds of active-duty personnel and civilians attended the ceremony, which featured a mixed, four-ship flyover by F-15s and F-16s from Eglin AFB, Fla. General Carlson, the AFMC commander, was the guest of honor. He is retiring from the Air Force after 37 years of service. (U.S. Air Force photo/Ben Strasser)

AFMC Organizational Excellence

Senior Master Sgt. Scott Leach, Headquarters Air Force Materiel Command first sergeant, lowers the organization’s guidon to allow Gen. Bruce Carlson, AFMC commander, to add the Air Force Organizational Excellence Award. It was part of a formal retreat ceremony, which featured a mixed, four-ship flyover by F-15s and F-16s from Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., that took place Nov. 18 in front of Headquarters AFMC at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. General Carlson, who was the guest of honor at the retreat, is retiring from the Air Force after 37 years of service. (U.S. Air Force photo/Al Bright)

AFPC commander visits AFIT

Capt. Ryan Kristof, mechanical systems course director at the Air Force Institute of Technology, briefs Maj, Gen. K.C. McClain, Air Force Personnel Center commander, on the mission and capabilities of AFIT's Civil Engineer and Services School. Maj. Gen. McClain's Spread the Word briefing team visited Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio Nov. 12 - 14 to update the workforce on personnel changes and to seek firsthand feedback on the concerns of base Airmen and civilian employees. (U.S. Air Force photo/Ben Strasser)

AFPC commander visits Wright-Patt to "Spread the Word"

Col. Barry Mines, Dean of Air Force Institute of Technology's Civil Engineer and Services School, briefs Maj. Gen. K.C. McClain, Air Force Personnel Center commander, on various distance learning options during a tour of one of AFIT's satellite broadcast rooms. General McClain and her Spread the Word briefing team visited Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio Nov. 12 - 14 to update the workforce on personnel changes and to seek feedback on the concerns of base Airmen and civilian employees. (U.S. Air Force photo/Ben Strasser)