A deployment of USAF F-15Cs, a KC-135, and some 200 airmen have begun air surveillance and policing operations in Iceland, US Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa officials announced. Four F-15Cs from RAF Lakenheath, England deployed as part of the package, along with a KC-135 from RAF Mildenhall and some 200 airmen from various USAFE-AF Africa bases, kicking off 871st AES operations on April 17. Since 2008, the Keflavik International Airport has hosted NATO partner nation aircraft in support of the Icelandic air security mission. The US removed its permanently stationed forces from the nation when it closed Naval Air Station Keflavik in 2006, but NATO has maintained its commitment to providing defense for Iceland by rotating air defense forces from its member states in the years since. “We’ve been honoring these commitments with our partners here in Iceland for a long time,” said USAF Lt. Col. John Stratton commander of the 871st AES. “It’s an extremely important relationship, an extremely important partnership and a very, very important mission we do.”
NASA Boss: Race to Moon Has National Security Stakes
Sept. 15, 2026
NASA is pushing hard to get astronauts back to the moon by 2028—and the urgency is driven in no small part by the national security implications of doing so before China does, Administrator Jared Isaacman said Sept. 15.
