The safety 
investigation board looking into last week’s fatal C-17 crash convened Monday at JB Elmendorf, Alaska, to begin its inquiry, base spokesman Bob Hall told the Daily Report. The C-17 went down shortly after takeoff from Elmendorf on a training flight July 28, killing the four airmen aboard. The aircraft was assigned to Elmendorf’s 3rd Wing. News of the safety investigation’s beginning came as base officials released photos of the C-17’s wreckage. (See Elmendorf report by SrA. Cynthia Spalding)
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.