A dozen or so B-52s and 650 personnel from Barksdale AFB, La., passed through Andersen AFB, Guam, last week as part of the Air & Space Expeditionary Force 7 and 8 deployment. It was just another sign that Guam is a rising star in the Air Force firmament, serving as a key strategic deployment location for bombers on rotation duty supporting US Pacific Command’s area of operations and as a maintenance way station for aircraft going on to support operations in Southwest Asia. PACAF has personnel in place at Andersen to perform phase maintenance on B-52 bombers en route to SWA. Being able to conduct maintenance at Andersen prevents wasting flying hours, allowing the aircraft and crew to complete more combat missions, says to Lt. Col. Ronald Funk, 40th Air Expeditionary Group vice commander.
House lawmakers are encouraging the Air Force and U.S. Special Operations Command to work together as each pursues long-range, long-endurance reconnaissance drones. Both entities are investing in unmanned assets that can slip into highly defended areas, loiter over a particularly valuable target for days at a time, and traverse multiple…