US Pacific Command recently concluded Operation Pacific Angel, a multinational collaborative effort to bring medical care and school improvements to two communities in Jaffna in northern Sri Lanka, according to a release. In coordination with ongoing efforts by the US Embassy, PACOM members joined experts from Bangladesh, Nepal, Maldives, and the Sri Lankan air force to provide free medical care to some 4,000 people and perform renovations on six schools in the area that serve 1,100 students. TSgt. Maybelle McKinney-Martin, 35th Medical Group physical therapy flight chief, said, “Learning how to communicate has been a difficult but very rewarding challenge. Just being able to help the Sri Lankan community alongside other nations has been a wonderful experience.” (See last year’s operation, Pacific Angel Wraps in Philippines.)
The Pentagon is significantly bolstering airpower near Venezuela, dispatching the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to Latin America, it said in an Oct. 24 statement. The announcement came just hours after U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers and other U.S. assets flew near the Venezuelan coast on Oct. 23.
