Both the House and Senate passed measures permanently increasing to $400,000 the maximum life insurance coverage available to service members and veterans. The action replaces the temporary increase passed earlier this year that was set to expire Sept. 30. The new maximum is retroactive to Sept. 1, 2005.
The Air Force will begin its 71st annual Operation Christmas Drop on Dec. 4. The weeklong exercise is a yearly tradition that delivers supplies such as food, fishing equipment, school books, and clothes to remote islands in the Pacific. It is the longest-running Department of Defense humanitarian mission.