A California Air National Guard F-16 crashed Friday morning during a routine training flight. The pilot from the 144th Fighter Wing at Fresno safely ejected. The day before on the other side of the country, a T-38 from the training wing at Columbus AFB, Miss., crashed about 40 miles south of Memphis, Tenn. The student and instructor pilots both ejected safely.
Control of the skies in Operation Epic Fury is enabling the Pentagon to rely more on satellite- and laser-guided bombs, throttle back on expensive long-range standoff munitions, and move to a new phase of air war, defense officials said on March 4. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen.…