In addition to operating its own Predator unmanned aerial vehicle squadron—the 3rd Special Operations Squadron at Creech AFB, Nev.—Air Force Special Operations Command has just taken charge of a reactivated 11th Intelligence Squadron to process and disseminate Predator data tailored to special operations forces. The Air Force reactivated the 11th IS earlier this month at Hurlburt Field, Fla., with about 38 members initially and plans to grow it to 135 airmen by 2008.
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…