Defense Secretary Robert Gates announces that the command billet for US Air Forces in Europe would be reduced from a four-star to a three-star post with the next command change. He announces the same rank reduction for the US Army and Navy components for US European Command.
Less than a day after arriving in the Middle East, F-15E Strike Eagles from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. defended Israel from an Iranian attack in April 2024. DUDE flight, four F-15Es from the 335th Fighter Squadron, downed two dozen Iranian drones in roughly 45 minutes.