Gen. Lance W. Lord, the soon-to-retire Air Force Space Command commander, heaped accolades on the airmen of the 341st Space Wing, Malmstrom AFB, Mont., during a recent visit, remarking that, in 2005, they had achieved a 99.792 percent alert rate—the highest for the wing in the past 10 years. Lord says two things contributed to the record rate: commitment by the airmen and commitment by the nation to modernize the ICBM force. During the past 10 years, he said, the Pentagon has spent more than $8 billion on the missile fleet.
NATO Scrambles Fighter in Newest Response to Russian Drones
Sept. 16, 2025
NATO scrambled its first fighter Sept. 13 under its new plan to bolster its defenses against Russian air incursions that was put into place after an array of Russian drones flew into Polish airspace last week, the officials from the alliance’s military command said.