While the memorandum of understanding between the US and Russia was debated and agreed on for flight safety between the two countries during the operation in Syria, Russia has pressed for more. The country asked the US to assist with personnel recovery in Syria if an aircraft goes down, a request that wasn’t agreed to, said Lt. Gen. Charles Brown, the commander of Air Forces Central Command who oversees the air war against ISIS. Russia made the request before the memorandum of understanding was agreed to, but the US has just enough resources to take care of itself, Brown said at AWS16. The US has deployed personnel recovery assets to Turkey, Iraq, and Kuwait to be on call for combat search and rescue support, Brown said last week. The coalition has forward deployed these assets, including keeping them airborne during some operations, to be able to respond instantly to a pilot in distress if necessary, he said.
Back from a Thanksgiving week recess, the push to pass the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act hit another snag Nov. 29, as the Senate voted against ending debate on its version of the bill. At the same time, Congress is staring down a Dec. 3 expiration date for its continuing…