Some 37 airmen of the Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve Command, and active-duty Air Force deployed to Iraq with the 557th Expeditionary RED HORSE are helping construct four tactical operations centers for US Army elements headquartered at Forward Operating Base Kalsu, south of Baghdad. SSgt. Julie Weckerlein reports that the Army asked for RED HORSE help specifically because they are self-sufficient, providing a variety of specialties from heavy construction to plumbing and electrical. The location has complicated the work on two fronts: slow delivery of construction materials and constant threat of attack in an area known as the “Triangle of Death.”
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.