US Alaska Command and the Alaska National Guard mounted their annual expedition to recover airmen’s remains from the 1952 crash site of a C-124 Globemaster II on Colony Glacier. Expeditions have been able to recover and identify the remains of 17 of the 52 airmen killed since the crash was located by a National Guard helicopter crew in 2012, ?according to officials. “Our hope and goal is to find and return the remaining 35 service members,” Navy Lt. Cmdr. Paul Cocker, Operation Colony Glacier project officer, said in a release. “It is an honor and privilege … to possibly provide closure for all the families involved,” he added. “We are committed to assisting in the safe recovery of any human remains, personal effects, and equipment at the crash site. As with any operation of this nature, great care and consideration for family members will be our first priority,” Cocker said. The C-124 was lost with all aboard when it crashed enroute from McChord AFB, Wash., to Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, during a storm. Searchers plan to continue the recovery through the end of June, weather permitting.
With key members of Congress wavering on the possibility of a $350 billion defense reconciliation bill, defense experts told Air & Space Forces Magazine that the Pentagon is likely drawing up budget backup plans—but such plans would face hard choices between high-end weapons and low-cost drones and other programs in…