US Transportation Command and Air Mobility Command decided to restore Misawa AB, Japan, as a stop for Patriot Express, contracting with North American Airlines to fly from Seattle to Misawa, Yokota, and Iwakuni in Japan. The Misawa stop starts Oct. 5 and will eliminate the need to take a fairly expensive commercial route through Tokyo via bus—a 12-hour trip—train or domestic flight. USTRANSCOM and AMC eliminated a number of Patriot Express flights, which provide both official and, when possible, space available seats, during a major restructuring of the program several years ago. (Misawa report by SrA. Stefanie Torres)
Advancements in commercial space technology could make President Donald Trump’s proposed “Golden Dome” missile defense network far more likely to succeed than the failed “Star Wars” strategic umbrella initiative of the 1980s, U.S. Space Command’s top general said May 22....