Airmen and aircraft deployed from Little Rock AFB, Ark., to Southwest Asia have moved into Iraq—to Balad Air Base—to reduce the distance they fly, making it possible to haul more cargo and passengers, say unit officials. The airmen of Little Rock’s 463rd Airlift Group also changed their in-theater designation to the 777th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, part of the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad.
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.