The answer is, maybe. The 2008 defense policy bill calls for a report by April 1 on the search and rescue capabilities available in the northwestern United States. Sen. Maria Cantwell and Sen. Patty Murray—Democrats from Washington—have been trying to prevent the deactivation of the 36th Rescue Flight at Fairchild AFB, Wash. The unit’s primary mission is to support the USAF Survival School at Fairchild in training thousands of aircrew members each year, but it often gets tapped to perform area rescues. Earlier this month, for instance, airmen of the 36th rescued a hiker stranded by an avalanche that killed two fellow hikers in the Snoqualmie Pass.
Unit commanders are being told to separate service members who can’t shave their cheeks and chin for medical reasons for more than a year, according to new guidance from Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.
