The Governor of Guam has created a civilian-military task force to oversee arrival and permanent beddown of some 8,000 US Marines being transferred from facilities on the Japanese island of Okinawa, reports KUAM-TV. Gov. Felix Camacho wants the group to develop a master plan for the island’s military expansion, including the ongoing construction by the Air Force to upgrade Andersen Air Force Base. USAF plans to base Global Hawk UAVs and possibly aerial refueling aircraft at Andersen, in addition to continuing to use it as a rotational base for fighters and bombers.
An F-16 pilot was awarded a Silver Star for a harrowing mission in which he dodged multiple surface-to-air missiles during the opening weeks of the operation against the Houthis in Yemen earlier this year.
