Retired Col. James Swindal, who was the pilot for Air Force One that flew the body of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy from Dallas to Washington, died last week at age 88 from complications arising from a broken hip. According to the Washington Post, Swindal flew during World War II and the Berlin Airlift and, in 1960, began flying President-elect Kennedy.
After years of experiments and tests, senior Air Force leaders say they're on the verge of using C-17s and other cargo aircraft to launch cruise missiles via airdrop, touting the development as a way to bolster the combat fleet and a major shift in the service’s mindset.