The 9th Reconnaissance Wing at Beale AFB, Calif. on Wednesday dispatched one of its U-2 reconnaissance aircraft to Robins AFB, Ga., to support the humanitarian-assistance mission in Haiti. Operating temporarily from Robins, the high-flying aircraft will take high-quality, broad-area overhead imagery of the Caribbean nation, which was devastated by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake on Jan. 12. These images will make it easier to coordinate and prioritize the relief activities across the nation, said Air Force officials. Already an RQ-4 Global Hawk reconnaissance aircraft from Beale has flown over Haiti and unarmed MQ-1 Predator remotely piloted surveillance aircraft are supporting the mission. First Lt. Richard Ricciardi, a Beale spokesman, told the Daily Report Thursday that U-2s have been used in the past in disaster-relief roles, such as after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and California wildfires in 2007. (Includes Beale report by TSgt. Luke Johnson)
The White House announced its United States Space Priorities Framework in a document released concurrently with Vice President Kamala Harris' first National Space Council meeting. Listed among five U.S. priorities is to “defend its national security interests from the growing scope and scale of space and counterspace threats.”