The Washington Air National Guard’s 141st Air Refueling Wing recently returned from a 2.5 week deployment to Manas AB, Kyrgyzstan. While deployed, the three crews of the 141st fueled 132 coalition aircraft with 1.6 million pounds of fuel, reports Air Force journalist MSgt. Mitch Gettle. One of the 141st crews now holds the record for longest tanker sortie ever flown out of Manas at 13.7 hours. The 141st ARW will become the first Guard associate wing in Air Mobility Command—a BRAC 2005 action—when it forms up to share aircraft with its neighbor at Fairchild AFB, Wash., the active-duty 92nd ARW.
The U.S. supports “a stronger and more capable” European defense, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said during an Oct. 22 press conference in Brussels—but that defense should not duplicate the functions and capabilities of the NATO alliance.