USAF doesn’t stand alone—entirely—in its recent push to become lead agent for higher flying unmanned aerial vehicles. We reported that Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) had expressed support for the plan. Now, a senior Air Force official says that a number of lawmakers have asked “why we are going down the path of duplicative systems.” Among the loudest, in addition to Dorgan: Sen. Wayne Allard (R-Colo.) and Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.). Dorgan and Allard are on the Appropriations Committee; Conrad is on the Budget Committee. Conrad and Dorgan see a future for Air Force Predator UAVs at bases in their state. Recent comments by House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-Mo.) should also put him on the Air Force side on this issue.
Gene Smith, Former POW and AFA Chair, Dies at 91
Jan. 19, 2026
Lt. Col. Richard “Gene” Smith, who overcame five and a half years as a prisoner of war in the notorious Hanoi Hilton from 1967 until 1973, died Jan. 16. He was one day short of his 91st birthday.
