Approximately 33 US active duty military, reservists, and civilians have returned from African Lion 2006 in the Sahara desert, where they performed medical services and humanitarian visits for more than 9,400 Moroccans. “I left a piece of my heart in Morocco,” says Air Force Capt. Alvin Barber, adding, “The people were the most grateful I have ever seen.” Barber is a physician assistant with the 435th Medical Squadron, Ramstein AB, Germany. During African Lion, the US medics worked with the Moroccan military and saw an average of 1,300 patients per day.
A dozen and a half Air Force Reservists formally transferred to the Space Force on July 15, becoming the new service’s first 18 part-time Guardians. The move is the culmination of more than two and a half years of work to create a system unlike any other military branch.