Maintainers from the Royal Australian Air Force are getting a little C-17 training help from their American counterparts at Hickam AFB, Hawaii, as they prepare to receive their first C-17 airlifter. USAF photojournalist TSgt. Shane Cuomo reports that the 15th Maintenance Group at Hickam is training maintainers from the Amberly RAAF 36th Squadron on the ins and outs of the C-17. The RAAF expects to receive its first C-17—which will be based at Amberly near Brisbane—on Nov. 28.
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.