Lt. Gen. Gary L. North is the new commander of 9th Air Force and US Central Command Air Forces, headquartered at Shaw AFB, S.C. In a ceremony last week, North replaced Lt. Gen. Walter E. Buchanan III, who officially retires on April 1. North was the director of operations for US Pacific Command.
U.S. Southern Command recently announced its first lethal strike on a suspected narco-trafficking vessel in two months, and the first under a newly formed permanent counter-cartel task force. The U.S. is also reportedly planning to transfer MQ-9 drones to Colombia to bolster its counter-cartel efforts.