Air Force Secretary Michael Donley approved the posthumous promotion of Capt. Lucas Gruenther, who died in an F-16 training mishap last week, to the rank of major, according to 31st Fighter Wing officials at Aviano AB, Italy. “Major Gruenther earned his promotion during a board in late 2011 and had been waiting to pin on his new rank,” states a Feb. 1 post at the wing’s Facebook page announcing the promotion. Gruenther, the wing’s chief of flight safety, took off from Aviano on Jan. 28 on a nighttime training mission over the Adriatic Sea. Base officials lost contact with him and a search ensued. An Italian vessel recovered his body on Jan. 31. The Air Force is investigating the cause of the mishap.
The U.S. military is sending more fighter jets to the Middle East to step up its war with Iran, adding to what is already the largest buildup of airpower in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. For now, the operation shows little sign of coming to a quick…