Keflavik Airmen Get More Help: US Air Forces in Europe has sent two teams of experts to NAS Keflavik, Iceland, to assist the 85th Group airmen in getting new assignments and deciding how and where to move their families—all of which has to take place within four months. (The Bush Administration announced the removal of US forces from Iceland in mid-March.) The USAFE teams arrived in April. The first team briefed airmen on what to expect with the changes, while the second team—arriving five days later—began the actual assignment process. USAFE officials said last week that team members talked face-to-face with each airman and resolved questions and concerns on the spot. The assignments team handled more than 350 assignments, accepting more than 20 special duty applications and processing more than 20 volunteer statements for Korea, in just two days.
The Air Force is launching an effort to develop a new stand-off missile with a range of 1,000 nautical miles, or 1,150 miles, that would eventually be used for both air-to-air and air-to-surface missions.