Seminars and lectures at the recent Air Education and Training Command 2007 Symposium focused on expeditionary war fighting, deciphering culture, the long war, and accelerating change, reports Capt. Tony Wickman. At the kickoff, AETC boss Gen. William Looney III noted that the training command makes direct contributions to the war on terror. He said: “Last year, we deployed more than 3,500 individuals to the [areas of responsibility]—about 1,450 are currently deployed. “We have 113 people on 365-day rotations, and 20 percent are in non-traditional Army taskings in-lieu-of.”
The use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border this week—which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to abruptly close the airspace over El Paso, Texas—will be a “case study” on the complex web of authorities needed to employ such weapons near civilian areas and the consequences of agencies…

