Gen. Tom Hobbins, US Air Forces in Europe commander, recently traveled to Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Qatar to visit with airmen deployed from Ramstein AB, Germany. He said it was a “promise” he made. Hobbins also took time to pursue some NATO business, particularly to evaluate the airlift and refueling operations at Manas and the command and control organization in Kabul that supports NATO’s International Security Assistance Force.
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.