President Obama on Oct. 15 will award the Medal of Honor to William D. Swenson, a former Army captain, for his conspicuous gallantry in Afghanistan in 2009, announced the White House on Monday. Swenson will receive the MOH for his courageous actions in thwarting the enemy and saving the lives of comrades after an ambush by a large, well-armed insurgent force on Sept. 8, 2009, in Kunar province, Afghanistan, while serving as an embedded trainer and mentor of the Afghan National Security Forces. At the time, Swenson was a member of the Army’s 10th Mountain Division. He will become the sixth living MOH recipient for actions in Afghanistan. Swenson separated from the Army in February 2011 and resides in Seattle. (See also Army release.)
Unmanned aerial vehicles are fair game for U.S. Special Operations Command’s armed overwatch platform competition, Air Force Special Operations Command boss Lt. James C. “Jim” Slife told reporters on Feb. 26. However, the MQ-9 Reaper drone might not be up to the challenge in its current form, he suggested during…