Air Fo
rce Reserve Command’s 445th Airlift Wing on Oct. 4 dedicated its new operations building at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, to the memory of Maj. LeRoy W. Homer Jr., a former wing member who died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Homer, an airman with the wing from 1995 to 2000, was first officer aboard United Airlines Flight 93, the hijacked aircraft that crashed near Shanksville, Penn., on that fateful day. Maj. Gen. Robert Duignan, commander of AFRC’s 4th Air Force and former head of the 445th AW, called Homer a “true inspiration” who “never quit on America,” adding that Homer provided everyone he met with a “glimpse of the best of the human spirit.” His widow, Melodie Homer, thanked the Wright-Patterson community for recognizing her husband’s sacrifice and said he would be honored by the tribute. (Wright-Patterson report by Capt. Caroline Wellman)
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…