A C-17 transporting 32 airmen, marines, and soldiers from Balad AB, Iraq, to Landstuhl Medical Center in Germany recently had to divert to RAF Mildenhall, Britain, when bad weather closed down Ramstein and Spangdahlem Air Bases. Mildenhall got 30 minutes notice. Quickly recalled off-duty medical personnel, set up a makeshift mass casualty center, and opened triage at the airfield. The drama only lasted a few hours, but the critical care patients among the troops needed constant attention.
U.S. Southern Command recently announced its first lethal strike on a suspected narco-trafficking vessel in two months, and the first under a newly formed permanent counter-cartel task force. The U.S. is also reportedly planning to transfer MQ-9 drones to Colombia to bolster its counter-cartel efforts.