A Senate move to keep open the Boeing C-17 production line gained strong support. Sen. Jim Talent (R-Mo.) and Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.) introduced legislation as part of the authorization debate. Under its terms, the Air Force would get authority to purchase up to 42 additional C-17s. The hurry-up measure followed a recent briefing in which Pentagon officials revealed they would cut off buys of the new airlifter after 180. (DR, 11/07/05)
The Pentagon is significantly bolstering airpower near Venezuela, dispatching the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to Latin America, it said in an Oct. 24 statement. The announcement came just hours after U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers and other U.S. assets flew near the Venezuelan coast on Oct. 23.

