Members of the California Air National Guard’s 163rd Reconnaissance Wing at March Air Reserve Base employed two MQ-1 Predator remotely piloted aircraft during exercise Grizzly Field 2012 to help with search and rescue efforts after a simulated earthquake struck southern California. The Predators provided full-motion video that helped civil and military responders locate mock stranded survivors during the recent exercise, according to an Aug. 9 March release. “The exercise was an overall success,” said Lt. Col. Keith Ward, commander of March’s 163rd Operations Support Squadron. Grizzly Field established a baseline for further integration of civilian disaster-response agencies with Air Guard assets and capabilities, such as overhead FMV, said Col. Randall Ball, 163rd RW commander. (March report by Capt. Perry Covington)
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…