There’s more to the story of the first deployment of the new C-12 force at Yokota AB, Japan. Stars and Stripes reports that the Yokota airmen that deployed to support the US special operations mission in the Philippines last fall flew into short and rugged airfields to deliver cargo and troops, something the former Yokota C-21s could not have accomplished. Capt. Omar Rashid, one C-12 pilot, likened his aircraft to a Bronco SUV and the C-21 to a Mercedes. Another, 1st Lt. Logan Draves, said the runway on one island was “like an uphill sidewalk,” but he added, “I knew the aircraft could handle it.”
The Space Development Agency says it’s on track to issue its next batch of missile warning and tracking satellite contracts this month after those awards were delayed by the Pentagon’s decision to divert funds from the agency to pay troops during this fall’s prolonged government shutdown.
