A second rotation of B-52s from Barksdale AFB, La., took over US Pacific Command’s continuous bomber presence at Andersen AFB, Guam, earlier this month, according to a March 9 release. “This time around, we are replacing our own brothers and sisters from the 96th Bomb Squadron,” said 2nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron assistant superintendent SMSgt. Walter Leitnaker. Barksdale’s 20th Bomb Squadron took over from its sister 96th BS on March 3. “Our mission is to provide that long strike capability to PACOM,” said 20th BS Operations Director Lt. Col. Wade Karren. “The objective is to deter our adversaries and to assure our allies in the region, so we provide that stability in that area of responsibility,” he added.
Australia’s military will help the Pentagon pursue so-called “air-breathing” hypersonic weapons and more under the U.S.-run Allied Prototyping Initiative, the U.S. Defense Department said Nov. 30. The Southern Cross Integrated Flight Research Experiment (SCIFiRE) initiative “will be essential to the future of hypersonic research and development, ensuring the U.S. and…