Elements of the 1st Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field, Fla., were scheduled to deploy Wednesday afternoon to the international airport at Port au Prince, Haiti, to provide air traffic control capability and support airfield operations there. They were part of the initial wave of US military assistance ordered by President Obama after a powerful earthquake struck the impoverished island nation on Tuesday. Additionally, two C-130 transports from the Puerto Rico Air National Guard were scheduled to bring in a team of 30 US military specialists to assess the situation there firsthand and coordinate the follow-on support with other US agencies and international organizations. Also on Wednesday, a Navy P-3 aircraft operating from El Salvador conducted aerial reconnaissance over the affected areas, and the USS Carl Vinson was steaming towards Haiti with additional ships under way. (SOUTHCOM release) (AFPS report by Donna Miles)
Multiple U.S. Air Force F-15 fighters have deployed to the strategic outpost of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean to protect the myriad of assets deployed there, including strategic bombers.