The 35th Fighter Wing at Misawa AB, Japan, redeployed its 14th Fighter Squadron airmen from Balad AB, Iraq, deploying in their stead airmen of the wing’s 13th FS for the current Air and Space Expeditionary Force rotation. First Lt. Shannon Collins reports that the 14th FS, supported by 35th FW maintainers, flew some 1,400 sorties for 5,800 hours over Iraq for AEF 6 and 7. The two units fly the Block 50 F-16CJ fighters, which normally conduct suppression of enemy air defense operations. In Iraq, though, they flew close air support, using their advanced targeting pods.
House, Senate Unveil Competing Proposals for 2026 Budget
July 11, 2025
Lawmakers from the House and Senate laid out competing versions of the annual defense policy bill on July 11, with vastly different potential outcomes for some of the Air Force’s most embattled programs.