In Operation Urgent Fury, American military forces raid the Caribbean island of Grenada to evacuate U.S. citizens, restore democracy, and eliminate a hostile Cuban/Soviet base. Military Airlift Command and Air Force Reserve C-5, C-141, and C-130 aircraft fly 496 missions to transport 11,389 passengers and 7,709 tons of cargo to Grenada. Strategic Air Command tankers and Tactical Air Command fighters, as well as Air National Guard EC-130Es, support the operation, which accomplished its triple mission. USAF Lt. Col. James L. Hobson Jr., who leads a flight of MC-130Es to successfully complete an airborne assault on Point Salinas, dropping paratroopers at the exact planned time over target in a hail of antiaircraft fire, receives the 1984 Mackay Trophy.
A Golden Dome task force established under U.S. Northern Command earlier this year has a broad remit, which includes fielding the capability to defend the U.S. against missile and drone attacks, its leaders said this week. Some of the primary focuses right now are ensuring Golden Dome can defend itself…