Australian military forces not only got a helping hand when they needed to rapidly reposition troops and equipment as they sent forces to assist East Timor with its political unrest, but also got to see first hand how to employ the new C-17 airlifter. Australia expects to get four of its own C-17s in 2007. The deployment of two C-17s from Hickam AFB, Hawaii, enabled Royal Australian Air Force members to get some “hands-on practice,” according to Warrant Officer Vivianne Northover of the Joint Movement Control Office. Mobility airmen teamed up with RAAF counterparts to make sure cargo was loaded safely into the C-17s, since the Australians were used to loading C-130s.
An important U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry AWACS command and control plane was among the aircraft damaged in a March 27 Iranian missile and drone attack on Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, people familiar with the matter told Air & Space Forces Magazine.