William Anderson, USAF’s assistant secretary for installations, and B.J. Penn, Navy installations guru, visited Guam last week to judge for themselves plans to increase military presence on the US territory. Anderson says joint basing efforts on Guam are progressing well, with the Air Force and Navy on “the right track of doing what is best for the taxpayer” but “not in any way limiting” military effectiveness. During a visit to the island last fall by Air Force Lt. Gen. Daniel Leaf, deputy commander for US Pacific Command, Leaf talked with local officials about plans to move some 8,000 marines from Okinawa and to add permanently assigned aircraft to Andersen Air Force Base.
The Air Force displayed all the firepower it has amassed on Okinawa in an unusually diverse show of force this week. IIn a May 6 “Elephant Walk,” Kadena Air Base showcased 24 F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters, eight F-15E Strike Eagles; two U.S. Army Patriot anti-missile batteries near the runway; and…