Some of Air Force Special Operations Command’s new CV-22 Ospreys were conducting operations in Honduras recently and while there applied their unique capabilities to further a humanitarian mission. Airmen of the 8th Special Operations Squadron, based at Hurlburt Field, Fla., employed three CV-22s to support various agencies in delivering supplies long-overdue to remote villages in the mountains that couldn’t be reached via roads. The Osprey force delivered a total of about 43,000 pounds of supplies, including food, hospital beds, and even textbooks to villages around Puerto Limpera. “This was a 13-hour crew day, landing on a dirt strip, resulting in a ‘brown out’ landing each time,” said Lt. Col. Darryl Sheets, mission commander. He added, “The power, range, and speed of the CV-22 Osprey offers unique capabilities to a broad spectrum of humanitarian relief efforts. Critics might claim otherwise, see Osprey Again in the Cross Hairs) (Hurlburt report by 2nd Lt. Mark Lazane)
The Pentagon’s fiscal 2026 defense budget, submitted to Congress last week, accelerates the downsizing of the U.S. Air Force. It proposes divesting 340 aircraft, while only acquiring 76. These cuts risk the Air Force’s ability prevail. “Peace through strength” has...
