Officials at Tyndall AFB, Fla., plan to spend about $24.5 million to convert more than 19 miles of overhead electrical lines to underground and enhance the base’s electrical grid reliability. A1C Anthony Hyatt reports that the project—dubbed “Pole Away”—began last year and should be done in fall 2008. Hurricane Katrina spurred the storm damage prevention effort.
Secretary of Defense Austin Lloyd III met with his counterparts from Australia, Japan and the Philippines to discuss bolstering defense ties on May 2. The discussion included plans for joint F-35 exercises with Japan and Australia in the coming years.