Pacific Air Forces Gen. Howie Chandler told the audience at AFA’s Air Warfare Symposium Thursday that the investment in military construction on the island is progressing rapidly, and Andersen Air Force Base has finished rebuilding one of its runways and is getting ready to rebuild a second to support continued bomber rotations and fighter packages. The planned Global Hawk bed down is also attracting a lot of interest, and allied participation in PACAF’s “capabilities forums” has been very robust, Chandler added. At the same time, the island is anticipating the arrival of 8,000 Marines from Okinawa, which will require some balancing of infrastructure projects as Andersen moves forward with implementing its joint basing initiative.
Earlier this spring, the 388th Fighter Wing proved just 12 Airmen can operate an F-35 contingency location, refueling and rearming the fighters at spots across Georgia and South Carolina. The demonstration, part of exercise Agile Flag 23-1, marks yet another proof of concept for the Air Force’s plan to send…