About 200 airmen and 10 A-10C Thunderbolt IIs from Air Force Reserve Command’s 924th Fighter Group at Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., deployed to Florida this weekend to practice providing close air support during combat search and rescue operations. The training with the 301st Helicopter Squadron, which flies HH-60G Pave Hawks, at Patrick AFB, Fla., will last through the end of the month, according to a 944th Fighter Wing release. The 47th Fighter Squadron trains with an HH-60 unit at Davis-Monthan, but it’s the unit’s first time to Patrick. Col. Thomas McNurlin, chief of the 924th FG, said the new unit’s deployment to a “location in a new setting will force them out of their comfort zone and encourage them to overcome the challenges by working together,” according to the release.
The Air Force is moving forward with a new, algorithm-driven system to help U.S. Northern Command better detect airborne threats. NORTHCOM and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, which are tasked with protecting the homeland from attack, depend on a slew of radars and other data systems to monitor U.S.…