The 
Air Force Weapons School conducted its twice-yearly Mobility Forces Exercise, or MAFEX, at Nellis AFB, Nev., and the Nevada Test and Training Range. Nearly 70 aircraft, mostly C-17s and C-130s, participated in the mass air mobility drill on May 23 to practice a forced-entry operation. US forces had to enter a simulated defended enemy country, defeat air defenses, and put troops on the ground during the exercise, according to a May 24 Nellis release. The participating assets came from bases around the world and were synchronized to arrive on the range as a combined, orchestrated force. The C-130s and C-17s delivered more than 100 paratroopers and supporting equipment in airdrops and landings on an unimproved landing strip, states the release. MAFEX is part of the weapons school’s six-month weapons instructor course.
Gene Smith, Former POW and AFA Chair, Dies at 91
Jan. 19, 2026
Lt. Col. Richard “Gene” Smith, who overcame five and a half years as a prisoner of war in the notorious Hanoi Hilton from 1967 until 1973, died Jan. 16. He was one day short of his 91st birthday.
