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  • Building 282 at Nellis AFB, Nev., serves as headquarters for the U.S. Air Force Weapons School. Nine of the 16 weapons squadrons are located at Nellis, including the F-15, F-16, A-10, and upon completion of current facility maintenance, the F/A-22 Raptor. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Larry Reid Jr.)

    U.S. Air Force Weapons School: Producing premier weapons officers since 1949

    Before the Aggressor aircraft attacked their first "blue team," before the Thunderbirds amazed audiences across the nation, before the "blue team" got their first kill on the "red team" in Red Flag operations, back when Nellis Air Force Base was still Las Vegas Air Force Base, there was the U.S. Air Force Weapons School. Known then as the Aircraft
  • An HH-60G Pave Hawk sits on the Nellis flightline. On average, the 66th Rescue Squadron flies 20 missions each week to practice different operations the crewmembers are expected to use while deployed in support of the Global War on Terror. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jacob R. McCarthy)

    One-of-a-kind mission, serving a one-of-a-kind force

    Throughout the Air Force's illustrious history, the self-sustained ability to provide recovery and assistance operations to downed aircrew and allies located behind enemy lines has always been an integral element in maintaining a superior air and space power. The men and women of the 66th Rescue Squadron, a tenant unit assigned at Nellis, make up a
  • Maj. Nicole Malachowski prepares to take off for a practice sortie with the Thunderbirds in an F-16 Fighting Falcon. Major Malachowski is the Thunderbird #3 right wing pilot and just finished her two-year tour with the Air Force Demonstration Squadron. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Justin Pyle)

    Pilots bid adieu to Thunderbird duty

    "Bittersweet." It was a word that crossed the lips of two Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds pilots as they described their feelings about leaving the unit. Majors Ed Casey and Nicole Malachowski performed the last show of their two-year tours as pilots for the Thunderbirds at the last day of the Aviation Nation Air Show Nov. 12
  • Airman 1st Class Catherine Donahue, 99th Medical Operations Squadron family practice clinic medical technician, performs duties while shadowing Col. Michael Bartley, 99th Air Base Wing commander, as part of the Shadow a Commander for a Day program. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Brian Ybarbo)

    COMMENTARY - Commander for a day

    For the past eight months, I've woken up at the same time every day knowing I go to work with a set schedule as a family practice clinic medical technician. My workday is extended on rare occasions when I have patients who require additional attention. But on Nov. 15 I stepped out of my comfort zone when I shadowed the 99th Air Base Wing commander
  • Tech. Sgt. Marsha Granger, 820th RED HORSE Squadron, proudly displays her "Pink Pride" after surviving her battle with breast cancer. Sgt. Granger actively participates in breast cancer fund raisers geared to educating the public and support those fighting to survive. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Nadine Y. Barclay)

    Cancer: One Airman’s struggle for life

    "God works in mysterious ways... if I wouldn't have been trying to get a breast augmentation, I would have never found out that I had breast cancer," said Tech. Sgt. Marsha Granger, a vehicle maintenance and analyst technician with the 820th RED HORSE, and breast cancer survivor. It's been one year since her husband had to come back from
  • Bruce Ronzheimer, a civil service aircraft mechanic with the 57th Equipment Maintenance Squadron, demonstrates the standard checks performed on an A-10 aircraft. Mr. Ronzheimer retires Nov. 30th after nearly 50 years of combined military and civilian service in the Air Force. (Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Oleksandra G. Manko)

    Fifty years in a blink of an eye

    "The most wasted of all days is one without laughter." - e. e. Cummings "What will I do next? I've got rehearsals with Chippendales ... no... I'm going to be a greeter at the commissary ... no ... I have a lot of home projects that I let go for many years and I'm going to catch up on them. I was also hoping to get hired at Lowes, seriously. I'd
  • Senior Airman Ryan Michaels is squatting 270 lbs at the Nellis gym. Airman Michaels has been doing sports since a young age. His father was his first trainer and now he works out with Staff Sgt. Steven Potts, an area supervisor with the 99th Security Support Squadron, who has been his training partner for five years now. (Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Oleksandra G. Manko)

    Airman by day, gladiator by night

    "Do something amazing," says the Air Force, and so the Airmen do - from putting their uniform on in service for their country to helping at a homeless shelter on their time off. Every once in a while, one of them gets to do not only something amazing, but something quite out of the ordinary. Senior Airman Ryan Michaels, Lake Havasu City native with
  • "The trick is in what one emphasizes. We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves happy. The ammount of work is the same." -- Carlos Castaneda (U.S. Air Force illustration by Airman 1st Class Oleksandra G. Manko)

    Commentary - Attitude of gratitude

    As I babysat my friend's 2-year-old daughter, quite a restless little peanut, we read a whole library of colorful, educational toddler books. One in particular caught my attention -- a book about complaining. The story was about a girl who was never happy, causing her parents to worry and her friends to avoid her company. We choose whether to
  • Retired Air Force colonel and former NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin, recounts his aviation experiences to commemorate the Air Force’s 60th anniversary during a press conference at the Nellis AFB 2007 air show, Nov. 9. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Larry E. Reid Jr.)

    Famed astronaut traces steps back to Air Force

    An aged man dressed in a blue flight suit standing behind a wooden lectern stared intently at the crowd gathered in front of him. His warm smile welcomed the attention as he knows his aviation story is about to be heard. It was 60 years ago when Buzz Aldrin, whose name would later be in history books, was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Air
  • Morris Jeppson, a former "Enola Gay" member gives a press conference at the Nellis AFB Air Show Nov. 9. (courtesy photo)

    'Enola Gay' member highlights Air Force past, present.

    Some people today don't recognize his name, but Morris Jeppson played a part in shaping the world's history and the America's status as a superpower. As a second lieutenant assistant weaponeer aboard the "Enola Gay," Mr. Jeppson was to remove the safety plugs from the first nuclear bomb to be used in combat just before reaching the target area,
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