Lt. Gen. William Shelton, commander of 14th Air Force and STRATCOM’s Joint Functional Component Command for Space, formally received his third star during a ceremony Jan. 8 at Vandenberg AFB, Calif. Gen. Kevin Chilton, STRATCOM commander, presided over the ceremony; Air Force Space Command head, Gen. Robert Kehler, also participated. Shelton assumed command of 14th AF in May 2005; his duties expanded in July 2006 when he took the helm of the JFCC-S. The Senate confirmed him for the third star on Dec. 19. (USAF report by SrA. Stephen Cadette)
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.