Rumsfeld Waxes Eloquent in Colorado: 
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told the graduating class as the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., that they must “go beyond simply a change of a process here or of a piece of equipment there. Our country did not survive and become great through timid responses or aversion to risk. … Your charge will be to challenge inherited assumptions, and cherished habits, and seek out better approaches.” Down the road from USAFA, Rumsfeld took time to praise the efforts of US Northern Command, telling reporters that the new command’s homeland defense progress has been “truly impressive.”
Loved Ones Mourn 6 Airmen Killed in KC-135 Crash
March 16, 2026
Tributes to the six crew members that died in the KC-135 Stratotanker crash in Iraq have flooded social media since the Pentagon released their identities March 14. They were the first Airmen to die while supporting Operation Epic Fury against Iran.