T
he Air Force recently supplied C-17s and airmen to oversee the loading of Army CH-47 Chinook helicopters onto the airlifters at Peterson AFB, Colo. Army National Guard soldiers from New York and Maryland had come to nearby Ft. Carson with their Chinooks to train at high altitude. Corey Dahl with the 21st Space Wing at Peterson reports that the C-17 can transport one Chinook, but it must be broken down, a process that takes 35 people about 10 to 18 hours. The C-17s were slated to deliver the 12 helicopters to Afghanistan for use in Operation Enduring Freedom. For Peterson, it was business as usual. “Basically anytime Ft. Carson is sending something overseas, it comes here,” said 2nd Lt. Carolyn Griffin, the officer in charge of air terminal operations at Peterson.
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.