First Lieutenant Elise Jones and SSgt. Joseph Jacovina, Air Forces Central liaison officers, work daily at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia to help move oversized USAF equipment, such as mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles, either further downrange or back to the United States. But their job entails something more unorthodox for airmen: coordinating the movement of this equipment over sea routes and not by air. “Most people don’t know we exist,” explained Jones, who is deployed from Altus AFB, Okla. The job is rewarding, but challenging, as they have to plan everything not only with the other services, but also third-country nationals. “We try to get the equipment to the people waiting for it as fast as possible, so they can utilize it,” said Jacovina, who is deployed from Kadena AB, Japan. (386th AEW report by TSgt. Lindsey Maurice)
U.S. Southern Command recently announced its first lethal strike on a suspected narco-trafficking vessel in two months, and the first under a newly formed permanent counter-cartel task force. The U.S. is also reportedly planning to transfer MQ-9 drones to Colombia to bolster its counter-cartel efforts.