A new, $15 million gun range has opened at Maxwell AFB, Ala., for airmen undergoing weapons qualification training and for firearms courses for security forces. The new range replaces the base’s old one that dated back to 1945. The fully contained range is larger than its predecessor, featuring two bays with 42 firing points each, sound-reducing material, and the ability to withstand higher caliber ammunition. Maxwell officials consider it “a vast improvement over the last facility.” “Each bay has a control tower with a built-in public address system to give loud and clear commands to the shooters,” said TSgt. Johnnie Grove, noncommissioned officer in charge of combat arms for Maxwell’s 42nd Security Forces Squadron. There is also a new combat arms training center adjacent to the range that has two large classrooms, an expanded armory, and a weapons maintenance area. (Maxwell report by Christopher Kratzer)
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.