Minnesotans have enlisted the aid of their US Senators—Republican Norm Coleman and Democrat Amy Klobuchar—to try to get the A-12 Blackbird spy plane returned to the state for continued display at the Air National Guard Museum. Now, the Pioneer Press reports that the issue has caught the attention of former CIA pilot (and son of the Learjet founder) John Lear, who calls the forced return of the aircraft—after Minnesota veterans refurbished it—to the Air Force, which turned it over to the CIA for a display, a “royal rip-off.” Lear vows to “pull every string” to get the A-12 back to Minnesota.
Pentagon Releases Cost of Living, BAH Rates for 2026
Dec. 30, 2025
The Pentagon will pay cost of living allowances to 127,000 service members in the continental U.S. in 2026, an increase of 66,000 members in 2025. Airmen and Guardians across the U.S. will also receive an average increase of 4.2 percent for their Basic Housing Allowance, compared to the 5.4 percent…
