US Central Command is still investigating the weekend attack on the USS Mason in the Red Sea, another in a series of missile attacks on the ship. On Saturday, the destroyer detected a missile threat from Houthi-controlled areas on the Yemeni coast, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said during a Monday briefing. The ship deployed countermeasures “as appropriate.” The missile didn’t reach the ship and the crew was fine. It was the latest in a series of missile attacks on the Mason. On Oct. 12, US ships, on the order of President Obama, hit three radar sites in Houthi-controlled territory on the coast in response to the attacks on the Mason. Cook said the military is weighing its response to the most recent attack.
U.S. Air Force F-35s and F-22s regularly deploy deep into the Pacific region from Alaska, Utah, and Hawaii. In the future, though, the head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command would like to see the Air Force permanently station fifth-generation aircraft west of the international date line—closer to China.