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  • Illegal dumping

    Think before you throw

    It would seem like containers full of gasoline, and gunpowder would be a no brainer, but it’s pretty common to find gasoline and used motor oil in the trash; once, we actually did find a container of gunpowder that had been tossed into the trash. This is a big safety concern as well as a potential hazard to the environment. Because of the potential environmental impact, Edwards Air Force Base is required to send quarterly reports to the California Environmental Protection Agency.
  • Brig. Gen. E. John Teichert, 412th Test Wing Commander, gives a high-five to a Team Edwards member at Edwards Air Force Base, California, June 18. Teichert and 412th Test Wing Command Chief, Chief Master Sgt. Ian Eishen visited the 412th Maintenance Group Weapons Team to learn about their jobs. (U.S. Air Force photo by Christopher Okula)

    Throwback Commentary: Testing Efficacy: The Substantial Influence of Test Professionals

    The crux of our impact is the enviable position of test in the life-cycle of a weapon system or strategic concept. While operators are involved with their weapon system when it is already established and fraught with the inertia that makes change difficult, testers deal with weapon systems at a stage with far fewer momentum pitfalls.
  • Fireworks light up the sky at the Summer Bash at Wings Field, July 4. Patriotic music such as the Air Force Song and the Star Spangled Banner accompanied the 20-minute show.(U.S. Air Force photo by Laura Motes)

    Fireworks Safety

    The Fourth of July is a wonderful time! Family and friends gather to enjoy barbecues, picnics and beautiful fireworks displays. Unfortunately it is also a time when many people will experience injuries and cause damage to property by using fireworks. Please take a few minutes to read the following information to ensure you and your family have a safe and happy 4th of July.
  • Assault landing, one of the first waves at Omaha. The Coast Guard caption identifies the unit as Company E, 16th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division. (Photo courtesy of Center of Military History)

    Hold It High

    A little over a hundred years ago, Western Europe experienced its own super bloom. In the middle of the brutal conditions of World War I, beautiful poppies covered the battlefields and even the hastily dug graves of fallen soldiers.
  • The summer of 2019 is officially “The Summer of Waivers” at Edwards AFB. All members are encouraged to identify opportunities to seek waivers to improve mission effectiveness at the Center of the Aerospace Testing Universe. When done right with a focus on risk management, common sense waiving of provisions can enhance the 412 TW’s ability to support the Warfighter and makes the AF as a whole a more effective force. (U.S. Air Force graphic by Giancarlo Casem)

    How to Write a Waiver During “The Summer of Waivers”

    The summer of 2019 is officially “The Summer of Waivers” at Edwards AFB. All members are encouraged to identify opportunities to seek waivers to improve mission effectiveness at the Center of the Aerospace Testing Universe. When done right with a focus on risk management, common sense waiving of provisions can enhance the 412 TW’s ability to support the Warfighter and makes the AF as a whole a more effective force.
  • Twenty-four F-22 Raptors from 3rd Wing and 477th Fighter Group, a C-17 Globemaster III and an E-3 Sentry participate in a close formation taxi, known as an Elephant Walk, March 26, 2019, during a Polar Force exercise at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. This two-week exercise gives squadrons an opportunity to demonstrate their abilities to forward deploy and deliver overwhelming combat power. (U.S. Air Force photo/Justin Connaher)

    New checklist changes increases combat air power

    For years the Raptor community has endured ground aborts for deployment and readiness flights due to a hardware limitation associated with its external fuel tanks. Recently the 411th Flight Test Squadron and F-22 Combined Test Force worked hand in hand with the broader F-22 enterprise to correct this deficiency resulting in a dramatic increase in combat capability during the latest readiness exercise at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.
  • A B-1 Lancer is positioned inside the Benefield Anechoic Facility on Edwards Air Force Base, California, in preparation for a series of electronic warfare tests, July 27, 2016. The BAF provides a "free space" for engineers to conduct electronic warfare tests without external radio frequency interference. (U.S. Air Force photo by Christopher Okula)

    Eddie’s Quest to the Benefield Anechoic Facility

    This March, the B-1B spent two weeks undergoing tests in the BAF. The tests involved measuring the performance of various antenna configurations on the aircraft within an anechoic chamber. . Typically, our engineers would have measured the performance of the antennas and provided the data back to the program office. After some months of data reduction and analysis, the engineers would determine if the antenna design needed more work and more testing. Our engineers had a better idea!
  • A U.S. Marine Corps F-35B from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 23 (VX-23), Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, undergoes a ground test of an improved probe light assembly in an Edwards Air Force Base hangar Feb. 28. The F-35 program recently completed testing on an improved lighting assembly with the KC-135 Stratotanker that will enable the Navy and Marine Corps F-35 variants to refuel behind the tanker at night. Flight testing of the redesigned light, which attaches to a refueling probe, was led by Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Maryland, and supported by Edwards Air Force Base, California. (Courtesy photo by Jonathan Case/Lockheed Martin)

    Delivering Performance at the Speed of Relevance

    In the past few days, the developmental test team at Edwards Air Force Base and the Air Force Test Center completed a vital test effort that directly impacted the warfighter. It was a joint effort with combat capability on the line. It didn’t take a decade to complete; it didn’t take a year or even six months. In fact, this critical test took less than a month from the initial program office request until the testing was finished and decision-quality data were delivered to the customer.
  • Brig. Gen. E. John Teichert III. (U.S. Air Force photo)

    The Center of the Aerospace Testing Universe

    Three months ago, I drove through the north gate to begin this current assignment. As I drove by the “Welcome to Edwards” sign, a wave of emotion swept over me. I was overwhelmed, humbled, and amazed that I was again back at The Center of the Aerospace Testing Universe.
  • At Ridley Mission Control Center, an employee sits in front of the Single Operator Multiple Antennas station developed by the 412th Range Squadron June 7, 2016. SOMA is an example of the types of innovation that Brig. Gen. E. John Teichert, 412th Test Wing Commander, wishes to be developed. For the original article, please follow the link: https://www.edwards.af.mil/News/Article/828304/join-412th-tw-on-its-innovation-journey/ (U.S. Air Force photo by Kenji Thuloweit)

    116 Day Innovation Blitz

    For the next 116 days, we will aggressively follow our forefathers’ lead. Starting today, we are instituting an innovation blitz in every unit and throughout our wing. We will leverage all of the energy and creativity that we can muster to pursue those innovations that will improve our processes, our lives, our units, and our ability to test and evaluate for the warfighter. We will look within ourselves and we will look around us. We will collaborate with others in the test community and throughout the Aerospace Valley.
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