North Dakota officials announced yesterday that the North Dakota Air National Guard’s 119th Wing Happy Hooligans had flown their first unmanned aerial vehicle mission from Fargo, N.D. The wing surrendered its last F-16s in January, but some of its members already had been training on the new MQ-1 Predator mission. Wing Commander Col. Robert Becklund, called the switch “a dramatic and cultural change” but his unit is “bringing all the skills from the fighter mission into the Predator mission.” The North Dakota Adjutant General, Maj. Gen. David Sprynczynatyk, credited “hard work and dedication” of the Hooligans for “making this a very successful transition.”
Earlier this week, the People’s Republic of China confirmed it is halting its nuclear arms control talks with the U.S., in retaliation for the U.S. continuing to sell arms to Taiwan. The move reinforces a “pattern of behavior” from Beijing, experts say.