: Eight Indian Air Force Su-30MKI fighters touched down at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, on July 17 to train with USAF F-15s from the base before participating in the upcoming Red Flag exercise at Nellis AFB, Nev. This is the first time that the Indian Air Force has been on American soil to train with US fighters. The Red Flag starts Aug. 9 and goes through Aug. 25. On July 13, the Su-30s landed at Lajes Field, Azores, in the Atlantic Ocean en route to the mainland US. The Indian contingent includes about 250 personnel, including 32 pilots, two tankers, and a cargo airplane. (Air Force photo caption by A1C Ryan Crane)
A three-month continuing resolution that ended in December inflicted less pain on the Department of the Air Force than it had expected, as procurement and construction continue in the new year. The federal government operated under a stopgap spending measure that stretched from the beginning of the fiscal year on…