The Defense Department is as committed as ever to bringing home the thousands of US military personnel who remain missing in action from the Korean War and other conflicts, Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Michelle Flournoy said Thursday. “Your loved ones gave their lives for this country. We honor their sacrifice. We are committed to their recovery,” she said in a speech to families of MIAs in Arlington, Va. As a sign of this commitment, DOD, with Congress’ support, is increasing its recovery activities so that it is able to identify the remains of up to 200 individuals per year by 2015, up from 85 today, she said. While North Korea is currently inaccessible to recovery teams, progress is being made with Russia and China. For example, China provided information last year on the crash site of a Korean War-era Navy aircraft in Chinese territory, she said. (AFPS report by Lisa Daniel)
The Air Force is considering two bases for the next Active-duty KC-46 component, and six bases for the next Pegasus Reserve unit with a decision expected this fall. The service announced May 13 it is looking at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, and MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, as candidate…