US forces last fall set up a remote airfield inside Syria and have flown 50 C-17 missions as of last week, according to Air Forces Central Command. The remote airfield has also been used for more than 100 C-130 flights to help resupply US special operations forces and allied Syrian fighters in their approach to Raqqa and other ISIS strongholds inside Syria, AFCENT Deputy Commander Maj. Gen. Jay Silveria said at AWS17. The site was just a flat spot of dirt before crews, including Air Force contingency response airmen, arrived to build it up for air operations. It is still being built up, but has become essential for the fight inside Syria, Sylveria said. Without this site, aircraft would have been forced to fly a much greater distance and it would be “much more difficult to get into Syria,” he said.
Billy Mitchell: Lessons a Hundred Years Hence
Dec. 16, 2025
Exactly 100 years ago, on Dec. 17, 1925, Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell was convicted by court-martial for violating an order that required approval before he could engage with the media. Mitchell’s provocative thoughts and unorthodox methods sought attention for a cause that he saw as uniquely American
