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Train the world’s greatest F-35 and F-16 fighter pilots Dec. 11, 2015
Vol. 15, No. 46
INSIDE Snowin’ and glowin’
STORIES
Holiday safety, 3
Top doc joins 944th, 4
Italy gets first F-35, 5
Navy variant of F-35, 6
TAPS, 7
FEATURE
Staff Sgt. Marcy Copeland Airman 1st Class Ridge Shan
COOKIE DRIVE Children engage in close-range snowball attacks made from man-made snow shipped in for Holiday Magic Dec. 4 at Luke Air
Force Base. The snow is one of numerous attractions and activities provided at the event. For more photos, see Page 12.
See Page 16
AETC commander visits Luke
75 YEARS OF
by Staff Sgt. he said. “We want to do it in a way that is mo- Senior Airman James Hensley
AIRPOWER MARCY COPELAND tivational, builds teams and gets it done right
the first time. We have to take care of Airmen
Luke Air Force Base Air Show 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs and their families so they can take care of the
mission. In today’s environment, we must be
April 2 and 3, 2016 Lt. Gen. Darryl Roberson, Air Education and innovative. And, it takes leadership at every
Training Command commander, visited Luke level for AETC to succeed.”
QUOTE OF THE WEEK Air Force Base Dec. 2 through 3 to acquaint
himself with the base and personnel. It is his The general also discussed total force inte-
“Just as we spend our hard-earned first visit to Luke since taking command of gration and sequestration among other things.
money on cars, we spend more than AETC in July. Cheryl, his wife, and Chief Mas-
2,000 hours a year at work. That’s ter Sgt. Gerardo Tapia, AETC command chief, While at Luke, Roberson visited several units
an investment worth considerably accompanied the commander. including the 61st Fighter Squadron and air-
more than any car. As such, we should craft maintenance unit, the 944th Fighter Wing,
have the same, if not more, pride and His visit emphasized familiarization with the and the F-35 Academic Training Center – the
commitment to ownership of those F-35 Lightning II operations at Luke to include newest facility at Luke.
responsibilities.” maintenance, training and simulator experi-
ence. The visit also included an all-call, during “Air Power truly does start here,” he said.
Master Sgt. Shane Cummins which the general spoke to Luke Airmen. “You are the ones working to make it happen
56th Contracting Squadron every day.”
“What you’re doing here is so important,” he
WEATHER told the audience. “Luke fills a critical role in Lt. Gen. Darryl Roberson, Air and Education
producing F-16 and F-35 pilots for our Air Force Training Command commander, speaks Dec.
Today and air forces around the world.” 3 at an all call at Luke Air Force Base. Rober-
son talked about mission priorities, airman-
67°/49° Roberson highlighted his priorities: motivated ship and the importance of Luke Air Force
mission accomplishment, compassionate care of Base to AETC. For more photos, see Page 18.
Chance of Airmen and families, innovation and leadership.
showers
“There are a lot of ways to get the job done,”
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