An article this week in the Rapid City Journal recounts the first flight of Allegiant Air from Rapid City, S.D., to the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, the new name for Williams Gateway Airport. Reporter Dan Daly notes that the airport is the product of a “13-year effort by Mesa and other nearby cities to turn the former Williams Air Force Base into a civilian economic engine for the east end of the Phoenix area.” Williams fell to an early BRAC, and Daly goes on to report how Ellsworth barely escaped BRAC 2005.
KC-135 Crashes In Iraq While Supporting Iran Ops
March 12, 2026
A U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker supporting Operation Epic Fury against Iran crashed during a refueling incident involving two aircraft over Iraq March 12, U.S. Central Command announced. The aircraft were not shot down, CENTCOM added.