Ten Afghan airmen have graduated the Mi-17 helicopter engine and body maintenance course at the Afghan air force base in Kabul, becoming the first AAF personnel to complete this training. “The Mi-17 is the centerpiece of the Afghan air force, and the AAF is going to have the Mi-17 for the next 25 years,” said Lt. Col. Joseph Giuliani, a senior US Air Force air advisor in Kabul, who spoke at the Jan. 1 graduation ceremony, in highlighting the importance of this milestone for the fledgling air arm. Mongolian air force personnel, who joined NATO’s training mission last October, taught the two-month course—in Russian—to the Afghans. It included classroom-based familiarization, followed by practical, hands-on application. “I am proud to be a professional now,” said Lt. Nabiullah Ahmadi, one of the graduates. (Kabul report by MC2C Vladimir Potapenko)
Since President Donald Trump first unveiled his “Golden Dome” missile defense initiative in late January, much of the focus for it has been focused on space—how the Pentagon may deploy dozens, if not hundreds, of sensors and interceptors into orbit to protect the continental U.S. from missile barrages. But the Air…