Members of the Utah Air National Guard’s 151st Air Refueling Wing, along with airmen from Sheppard AFB, Tex., were in Santiago, Chile, on Feb. 27 when the massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake hit the South American nation. They had arrived there days earlier to deliver the first of three KC-135E tankers that the Chilean Air Force has purchased from the US and to train the Chilean aircrews and maintainers. After the Earthquake, the Air Guardsmen immediately switched to humanitarian-assistance mode, transporting mobile medical units and supplies around Chile to support the international relief efforts. Along the way, they’ve been able to fit in some real-world training for the Chileans, who are riding along with them. “These students are getting Ph.D.-level training,” said Lt. Col. Boyd Badali, one of the 151st ARW pilots. He added, “It’s been a great experience.” (Salt Lake City report by Maj Krista DeAngelis)
The Pentagon is making progress developing a new target round for test the effectiveness of U.S. missile defenses. Contractor Northrop Grumman announced the first flight of a redesigned vehicle Jan. 8.
