The 8th Fighter Wing at Kunsan AB, South Korea, conducted a no-notice combat readiness exercise to test the base’s ability to defend the peninsula at a moment’s notice last week. “We conduct multiple operational readiness exercises every year to hone that edge of readiness,” 8th FW inspector general Lt. Col. Scott Siegfried said in a release. Beverly Pack 16-2 included a quick-launch F-16 sortie generation exercise with 20 aircraft, and “simulated incoming theater ballistic missile attacks” as well as chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological threats, he added. Though the exercise was pre-planned, North Korea has escalated tensions in the region with a nuclear test last month, followed by a ballistic missile launch earlier this week. “The mentality of being ready around-the-clock is critical … to stand strong regardless of the circumstances and defend the Republic of Korea,” said Siegfried. The readiness exercise ran Feb. 2-6.
Tucked into the Senate Armed Services Committee’s annual defense policy bill is the legal backing the Space Force needs to dissolve the Space Development Agency and the Space Rapid Capabilities Office as part of its acquisition reform efforts.