The Air Force formally announced Wednesday that it had shifted 21 MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicles from Air Combat Command to Air Force Special Operations Command at the end of May. And, the service plans to give AFSOC another seven later this month, making a total of 28 for the air commandos’ 3rd Special Operations Squadron at Nellis AFB, Nev. The shift last month also gave the 3rd SOS some ACC personnel. AFSOC activated the new squadron in fall 2005.
B-52 Stratofortress bombers marked a new first in Operation Epic Fury when some of the BUFFs flew over Iran carrying JDAM-guided gravity bombs, according to people familiar with the matter. The development signals a weakening of Iranian air defenses and a new use for the venerable bomber in the nearly…