A ski-equipped Air National Guard C-130 on Thursday rescued Buzz Aldrin from the South Pole on Thursday. Aldrin was part of a private tour group to the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station when he became ill, according to the National Science Foundation. An LC-130 from the 109th Airlift Wing of the New York Air National Guard responded to fly Aldrin from the South Pole Station to McMurdo Station, where he was then taken to New Zealand for care. There were no additional details on Aldrin’s status as of Thursday afternoon. The ski-equipped LC-130s deploy to Antarctica to support the National Science Foundation by flying an “air bridge” between the remote Amundsen-Scott station to McMurdo.
The U.S. military is sending more fighter jets to the Middle East to step up its war with Iran, adding to what is already the largest buildup of airpower in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. For now, the operation shows little sign of coming to a quick…