When Iraqis stepped up to their ballot boxes earlier this month and voted on a constitutional referendum, US airmen and marines helped to make the process run smoother. The effort involved transporting some 1,320 Iraqi poll workers from the Baghdad International Airport to polling stations across the country, and then back again. Elements of USAF’s 447th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron at Sather Air Base (the name for the USAF facility at the airport), along with the Marine Corps 2nd Expeditionary Force, helped coordinate the 10 flights needed over a period of two days. Two of the flights were aboard Iraqi Air Force C-130s—visibly exciting both the Iraqi aircrew and the pollsters, according to USAF Capt. Robert Frakas, 447th aerial port flight commander.
A Golden Dome task force established under U.S. Northern Command earlier this year has a broad remit, which includes fielding the capability to defend the U.S. against missile and drone attacks, its leaders said this week. Some of the primary focuses right now are ensuring Golden Dome can defend itself…