In case anyone had doubts, Air Force rescue crews are fully engaged in operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. To ensure the word gets out, the US Central Command Air Forces has begun listing, in its summaries of airpower activities, the number of helicopter rescue missions flown. In the first two such reports, CENTAF says that USAF HH-60 Pave Hawks flew five rescues on May 25 and two on May 24. The releases also noted, “Three patients with life-threatening injuries were saved as a result of these missions.”
The Air Force conducted its first successful test of the Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon, or ARRW, on May 14, snapping a streak of three consecutive failed tests and giving the beleaguered hypersonics program a much needed boost. Off the coast of Southern California, the AGM-183A ARRW separated from the wing…