Maj. Bob Battema with the 522nd Fighter Squadron flew the unit’s last F-16 Viper flight at Cannon AFB, N.M., on Dec. 21, preceding the formal inactivation of the squadron, reports the Clovis News-Journal. Cannon formally became an Air Force Special Operations Command base in October, and the 522nd FS was the last Air Combat Command fighter unit at Cannon to furl its colors. The conversion to an AFSOC facility is in full swing.
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.