The Defense Department is as committed as ever to bringing home the thousands of US military personnel who remain missing in action from the Korean War and other conflicts, Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Michelle Flournoy said Thursday. “Your loved ones gave their lives for this country. We honor their sacrifice. We are committed to their recovery,” she said in a speech to families of MIAs in Arlington, Va. As a sign of this commitment, DOD, with Congress’ support, is increasing its recovery activities so that it is able to identify the remains of up to 200 individuals per year by 2015, up from 85 today, she said. While North Korea is currently inaccessible to recovery teams, progress is being made with Russia and China. For example, China provided information last year on the crash site of a Korean War-era Navy aircraft in Chinese territory, she said. (AFPS report by Lisa Daniel)
The Air Force displayed all the firepower it has amassed on Okinawa in an unusually diverse show of force this week. IIn a May 6 “Elephant Walk,” Kadena Air Base showcased 24 F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters, eight F-15E Strike Eagles; two U.S. Army Patriot anti-missile batteries near the runway; and…