Air Force expands cheating investigation

WASHINGTON – An Air Force investigation into alleged cheating by crews that handle nuclear missiles has broadened to include roughly twice as many officers as the Pentagon’s initial announcement last week that 34 individuals were under suspicion.

A spokesman for Air Force Global Strike Command said new cases are all at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana.

The Air Force announced Jan. 15 that an officer at Malmstrom had shared answers to a proficiency test by text messages with 16 other officers at the base and that 17 additional airmen apparently knew about the cheating but failed to report it.