Ogden Air Logistics Center at Hill AFB, Utah, has opted to pursue options No. 1 and 3 in the Propulsion System Rocket Engine Life Extension Program, awarding Northrop Grumman nearly $15.1 million on the ICBM Prime Integration contract, which USAF expects to extend Minuteman III readiness through 2020. The work includes refurbishing 96 propulsion system rocket engines and should be completed by October 2008.
U.S. Southern Command recently announced its first lethal strike on a suspected narco-trafficking vessel in two months, and the first under a newly formed permanent counter-cartel task force. The U.S. is also reportedly planning to transfer MQ-9 drones to Colombia to bolster its counter-cartel efforts.