F-15E pilot Lt. Col. Daren Sorenson, currently serving as staff director of the 414th Combat Training Squadron at Nellis AB, Nev., received his second Distinguished Flying Cross, recognized for his heroism in defending 50 coalition troops ambushed by insurgents in eastern Afghanistan last spring. Sorenson used his Strike Eagle’s munitions, in concert with low-altitude demonstrations of force, to disperse the focused insurgent attack during the May 25, 2011 mission. He then successfully coordinated strikes on insurgent positions concealed in the cliffs and caves surrounding the coalition group, according to Nellis officials. Sorenson received the DFC during a ceremony at Nellis on March 2, reported the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The Air Force awarded him his first DFC for his actions during the early stages of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, when he located and helped destroy an armored division of the Iraqi Republican Guard, said the Nellis officials. (Nellis release)
Air Force F-16 pilots are testing out new sensors that could help maximize their performance and avoid deadly accidents while flying fast fighter jets under heavy G-forces and stressful conditions.