Helping make disparate 
disaster relief elements coalesce into a coordinated whole is only a slight variation on a familiar refrain for Air Force Space Command forces. At the forefront, as usual, is the trusted navigation and timing abilities of GPS satellites. AFSPC has also helped tailor the Global Broadcast Service space-based, high-capacity broadcast communication system for use in Katrina support operations. On hand at Tyndall, working with the 1st AETF, are Col. Jay Santee, 21st Space Wing vice commander, and Maj. Paul Ohla and Capt. Jeff Owens, both from AFSPC headquarters. The Joint Space Operations Center at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., provides reachback support to Santee and his crew, and can, if needed, task space assets for direct support.
U.S. Southern Command recently announced its first lethal strike on a suspected narco-trafficking vessel in two months, and the first under a newly formed permanent counter-cartel task force. The U.S. is also reportedly planning to transfer MQ-9 drones to Colombia to bolster its counter-cartel efforts.