WASHINGTON — The Air Force said Friday it has ordered immediate inspections and repairs to about 130 of its A-10 aircraft to fix possible cracks in the wings.

There has been an increase in the number of cracks found in the thin-skin wings, largely related to fatigue in the aging fleet, the service said in a statement. The A-10 Thunderbolt II is the workhorse in the fleet of planes used by the Air Force for close-air support on the battlefront.

Air Force generals receive assignmentsThe Air Force chief of staff Friday announced several new assignments for general officers. Among them:

¡ Maj. Gen. James P. Hunt, director, Air and Space Operations, Headquarters U.S. Air Forces in Europe, Ramstein Air Base, Germany, to director, Air Force Quadrennial Defense Review, office of the assistant vice chief of staff, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Pentagon, Arlington, Va.;¡ Maj. Gen. William A. Chambers, director, communication, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, Pentagon, to director, Air and Space Operations, USAFE Headquarters, Ramstein;¡ Brig. Gen. Darren W. McDew, who has been selected for major general, director, public affairs, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, Pentagon, to director, communication and public affairs, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, Pentagon;¡ Brig. Gen. Brooks L. Bash, who has been selected for major general, commanding general, Coalition Air Force Transition Team, Multi-National Security Transition Command–Iraq, Baghdad, Iraq, to director, Air, Space and Information Operations, Headquarters Air Mobility Command, Scott Air Force Base, Ill.¡ Brig. Gen. Joseph D. Brown IV, deputy commander, Combined Air Operations Center 6, Allied Air Forces Southern Europe, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Eskisehir, Turkey, to deputy director, nuclear operations, U.S Strategic Command, Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.;¡ Brig. Gen. Daniel R. Eagle, director, intelligence, USAFE Headquarters, Ramstein, to deputy commander, Combined Air Operations Center 6, AIRSOUTH, Eskisehir, Turkey.Former sailor seeks new trial in leak caseNEW HAVEN, Connecticut — A former Navy sailor convicted of leaking details about ship movements to suspected terrorist supporters sought a new trial Friday, saying prosecutors lacked evidence and inflamed the jury.

Hassan Abu-Jihaad was convicted in March of providing material support to terrorists and disclosing classified national defense information.

Abu-Jihaad, who was a signalman aboard the USS Benfold, was accused of passing along details that included the makeup of his Navy battle group, its planned movements and a drawing of the group’s formation in the Persian Gulf on April 29, 2001.

Abu-Jihaad, who was honorably discharged in 2002, faces up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced in December.

Attorneys decry tactics in trial of two MarinesSAN DIEGO — The attorneys for two Marines charged in the killing of unarmed Iraqi detainees accused prosecutors Friday of intimidation by delaying the court-martial of one to try forcing testimony from the other, who faces similar charges.

Sgt. Ryan Weemer and another Marine, Sgt. Jermaine Nelson, face military charges of unpremeditated murder and dereliction of duty in the death of a detainee during combat in Fallujah in 2004. A military judge this week granted a prosecution request to postpone Weemer’s court-martial.

Weemer and Nelson have repeatedly refused to testify against each other, as well as against a former squad leader, Jose Nazario, who was acquitted in August in federal court.