C-17s and crews from JB Lewis-McChord, Wash., this month conducted a small-scale flag exercise as a “proof of concept” for Air Mobility Command’s new premier training exercise. Five C-17s and crews flew from McChord to the Mountain Home Range Complex in Idaho on May 17 where they conducted multiple mission-specific training flights in a small version of next year’s Mobility Guardian exercise. The C-17s flew alongside F-15Es from Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, simulating operations in a non-permissive environment. They also conducted airdrop training, with F-15Es flying reactive close air support, according to a McChord release. Mobility Guardian will replace the command’s Mobility Rodeo competition as its highest-level exercise. During the full exercise, the mission will be repeated at the Idaho range, but with 15 C-17s, 15 C-130s, at least 12 tankers, and a bigger fighter escort, the release states.
NASA Boss: Race to Moon Has National Security Stakes
Sept. 15, 2026
NASA is pushing hard to get astronauts back to the moon by 2028—and the urgency is driven in no small part by the national security implications of doing so before China does, Administrator Jared Isaacman said Sept. 15.
