A “supermajority” of senators—more than 75—has signed on with the National Guard Caucus to signal their opposition to DOD’s plans for unspecified cuts to the Army and Air National Guard. Led by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.), the Senate is pressing the Army and Air Force to work with state governors and preserve the strength of the Guard in a time of war. In a joint statement, both Senators call the recent military budget decisions demonstrative of a Guard “bias.” The Air Force has stated that ANG will be part of its proposed 57,000-personnel drawdown over the next five years.
An important U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry AWACS command and control plane was among the aircraft damaged in a March 27 Iranian missile and drone attack on Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, people familiar with the matter told Air & Space Forces Magazine.