The Air Force marked the 40th anniversary of the first F-15 flight. At Edwards AFB, Calif., on July 27, 1972, an F-15A took to the skies on the type’s inaugural flight, according to an Aug. 1 Edwards release. Prime contractor McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) assembled the airplane at its manufacturing plant in St. Louis. In July 1973, the first flight of the two-seat F-15B variant occurred, states the release. The F-15, the Air Force’s then-new air superiority fighter, entered service some two years later. Over the years, it has evolved from being strictly an elite air-to-air platform into a multirole aircraft with the advent of the F-15E version. Boeing has built more than 1,600 Eagles for the United States, Israel, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and Singapore, states the release. Air Force F-15s have served in combat since 1991 in places like Afghanistan and Iraq.
The push to secure free health insurance for members of the National Guard and Reserve regardless of duty status gained momentum in the past few days, as a bipartisan pair of Senators introduced legislation that would expand coverage and First Lady Jill Biden hosted National Guard leaders for discussions at the White…