• AFMC civilians set for Sept. 12 transition from NSPS

    The majority of Air Force Materiel Command employees covered under the National Security Personnel System will transition to the General Schedule beginning Sept. 12, the final of four phases within the Air Force that began on July 4. This conversion out of NSPS was mandated by the Fiscal 2010

  • Fighter engine bio-fuel testing underway at Arnold

    An F110 engine that powers the F-16 Fighting Falcon recently began performance testing here at Arnold Engineering Development Center using a 50/50 blend of JP-8 conventional aviation fuel and a bio-fuel derived from the oil contained in the seed of the camelina plant, commonly known as false or wild

  • Six altitude chambers coming to Wright-Patt

    Air Force Research Laboratory's 711th Human Performance Wing here will receive four hypobaric research chambers for aircrew research and equipment qualification testing. The Department of Defense announced June 14 the award of a $ 38.3 million contract to Environmental Tectonics Corp., Southampton,

  • Two image collects released by Tactical Satellite-3 demonstration program

    Air Force officials have released two image collects obtained by the Tactical Satellite-3's primary payload, the Advanced Responsive Tactically-Effective Military Imaging Spectrometer, during the experimental demonstration's 13-month mission.One image featuring the Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii, and the

  • AFRL Examines Renewable Fuel Sources

    Illustrating Air Force Research Laboratory's position at the cutting edge of alternative fuels exploration, an A-10C Thunderbolt II underwent recent flight demonstration powered on a blend of standard JP-8 fuel and hydrotreated renew-able jet, or HRJ, biofuel. The groundbreaking event marks one

  • Gate 22B set for partial closure to make way for improvements

    Gate 22B (I-675) in Area B is set to partially close as new overhead canopies and guard booths are installed beginning on Jun 28.The gate project, designed to protect security personnel and motorist from the elements and enhance force protection entry control procedures, is expected to last

  • Tactical Satellite-3 completes groundbreaking experimental mission

    Tactical Satellite-3 will transition from an experimental demonstration to an operational asset when spacecraft control authority officially transfers on Saturday, June 12 from the Air Force Research Laboratory's Space Vehicles Directorate here to Air Force Space Command at Peterson AFB, Colo.

  • X-51 Waverider makes historic hypersonic flight

    An X-51A Waverider flight test vehicle successfully made the longest ever supersonic combustion ramjet-powered hypersonic flight Wednesday, May 26 off the southern California Pacific coast.The over 200 second burn by the X-51's Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne-built air breathing scramjet engine

  • X-51A flight planned May 25

    Weather permitting, Air Force officials said the X-51A Waverider will make its first hypersonic flight test attempt Tuesday, May 25, after it's released by a B-52 bomber off the southern California coast.The unmanned X-51A is expected to fly autonomously for five minutes, powered by a supersonic