The Heavy Airlift Wing at Papa AB, Hungary, celebrated three years of operations. The wing has racked up more than 7,500 flight hours in about 500 missions with its three C-17s since its activation on July 27, 2009, according to US Air Forces in Europe’s July 30 release. It has moved massive amounts of cargo and some 27,000 passengers during that time. “This wing has flown relief missions to Haiti for earthquake relief and combat missions to Afghanistan,” said USAF Col. Keith Boone, wing commander. “We are proud of what we have accomplished in a short period of time.” Jointly operating the three C-17s are airmen from NATO members Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, and the United States, and from NATO Partnership-for-Peace nations Finland and Sweden. The teaming arrangement gives the US partners access to strategic airlifters that they would not be able to afford to operate on their own. (Papa report by Gabe Myers)
A new Navy missile could fill a long-range air-to-air need for the U.S. Air Force’s fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-generation fighters. The Navy’s portfolio acquisition executive for munitions posted information on the AIM-424 Long Range Air-to-Air Missile online on Aug. 22, the same day it unveiled the project at the service’s…