SSgt. Howie Loughran, an explosive ordnance disposal airmen assigned to the 31st Civil Engineer Squadron at Aviano AB, Italy, received a Bronze Star for his leadership during deployment to Iraq. His team diffused more than 80 improvised explosive devices and destroyed more than 50,000 pieces of ordnance.
A-10 Thunderbolt II attack planes in the Middle East are flying with fresh modifications as the Air Force looks to make the plane more versatile amid America’s ongoing blockade of Iranian ports and a tenuous ceasefire in the U.S. air war against Iran.