The Air National Guard at Selfridge ANGB, Mich., has decided that the proposed recreational shoreline area that Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) wants to cut out of the Guard base might just affect base security. The Macomb Daily reports that Brig. Gen. Michael Peplinski basically says it’s premature “to assess whether that’s even possible—from a force protection standpoint.” Peplinski, who believes that anything more than a narrow bike path would put a required security fence too close to base facilities, has agreed to discuss the matter with the Air Force, the state’s Adjutant General, and local and state elected officials. Apparently, the plan has been percolating for a number of years, but Levin’s letter to Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne earlier this month has generated renewed interest.
The Air Force displayed all the firepower it has amassed on Okinawa in an unusually diverse show of force this week. IIn a May 6 “Elephant Walk,” Kadena Air Base showcased 24 F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters, eight F-15E Strike Eagles; two U.S. Army Patriot anti-missile batteries near the runway; and…