Two F-22s and a KC-135 landed Wednesday in Lithuania for training and as part of demonstration of the US commitment to NATO. The Raptors, deployed from the 95th Fighter Squadron at Tyndall AFB, Fla., are temporarily based at RAF Lakenheath, England, for a rotation through allied nations in Europe. The Raptors and 20 airmen were welcomed at Šiauliai Air Base by Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite, who said the arrival showed “that the United States is honoring its commitments and is ready to protect our region with all the most modern measures,” according to a US Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa release. The Raptors will be in Europe until May, and recently conducted training in Romania.
A dozen and a half Air Force Reservists formally transferred to the Space Force on July 15, becoming the new service’s first 18 part-time Guardians. The move is the culmination of more than two and a half years of work to create a system unlike any other military branch.