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Train the world’s greatest F-35 and F-16 fighter pilots                                                                                         April 15, 2016
                                                                                                                                                         Vol. 16, No. 15
 INSIDE

STORIES
„ Pilot Tutor Program, 3
„ Luke Airman receives

    black belt, 4
„ Firefighters train to

    rappel, 6
„ Lightning strikes

    D-Back opener, 10

FEATURE

                                           Denise Willhite                                                                                               Senior Airman Devante Williams

  MILITARY CHILD PARADE                                     An F-35 Lightning II prepares to land March 29, 2016, at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz.

                                      See Page 13           AF names candidate bases, criteria for choosing next F-35A sites

INDEX

Action line ............................. 2
Briefs..................................... 3
Spotlight ................................ 4
Diversions ........................... 20
Sports.................................. 23

                                                                                    By                      Guard squadrons, which are planned to        feet and operational A-10 Thunderbolt
                                                                  Secretary of the Air Force                receive their first aircraft in the sum-     IIs, F-16 Fighting Falcons or F-15 Eagles
                                                                                                            mer of 2022.                                 against the approved criteria to identify
                                                                                            Public Affairs                                               candidate bases for the F-35A.
                                                                                                               “The Air Force is committed to a delib-
                                                               WASHINGTON (AFNS) — Air Force                erate and open process to address F-35          After identifying candidate bases, the
                                                            officials announced April 12 that Davis-        basing,” said Jennifer Miller, deputy as-    Air Combat Command and Air National
                                                            Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona; Home-          sistant secretary of the Air Force for in-   Guard will conduct site surveys at each
                                                            stead Air Reserve Base, Florida; Naval          stallations. “As we progress through the     location as applicable. Site survey teams
                                                            Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort             basing process, we will share information    will assess each location against opera-
                                                            Worth, Texas; and Whiteman AFB, Mis-            so interested communities are aware of       tional requirements, potential impacts
                                                            souri, are candidate bases for the first        what to expect.”                             to existing missions, infrastructure and
                                                            Reserve-led F-35A Lightning II location.                                                     manpower, and then develop cost esti-
                                                                                                               The basing criteria for the Air National  mates to bed down the F-35A.
                                                               The preferred and reasonable alterna-        Guard bases include mission require-
                                                            tives are expected to be selected in the        ments (weather, airspace and training           Based on the results of these efforts,
                                                            fall and the F-35As are slated to begin         range availability), capacity (sufficient    the Air Force plans to identify candidate
                                                            arriving at the first Reserve-led F-35A         hanger and ramp space, and facility          installations for the Air National Guard
                                                            location by the summer of 2023.                 considerations), environmental require-      locations this summer before selecting
                                                                                                            ments, and cost factors.                     the preferred and reasonable alterna-
                                                               The Air Force also released basing                                                        tives and beginning the environmental
                                                            criteria that will be used to select               The Air Force will evaluate Guard in-     impact analysis process later this year.
                                                            candidate bases for two Air National            stallations with runways of at least 8,000

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