A day after the nationwide constitutional referendum, US helicopters and fighters targeted insurgents in villages near Ramadi, Iraq, leaving some 70 militants dead, according to US Central Command. The scene was near the spot where five US soldiers died from an attack by an improvised explosive device. USAF F-15s performed an air strike against the location—when it appeared insurgents were going to plant another bomb—using a GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munition. Navy F/A-18s also struck a building being used by insurgents in the vicinity of Ramadi, after gunmen opened fire on a passing Cobra attack helicopter.
Airmen basic rarely go on to become four-star generals, but one who did retired last week after a 42 year career that saw him rise from a lowly slick-sleeve to the head of one of the Air Force’s most important major commands.