T
he C-17 crew from McChord AFB, Wash., thought it had flown its last Antarctic mission for this year’s Winter Fly-in, but they had to hold in place for a special aeromedical evacuation. At Christchurch, New Zealand, the McChord airlift crew from the 304th Expeditionary Squadron picked up another contingent from McChord, a medical team from the 446th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, and flew back to McMurdo Station in Antarctica, reports photojournalist TSgt. Shane Cuomo. The medevac team, which had been in Christchurch on a routine training flight, converted the C-17 from cargo to the medical mission, which would transport a patient that required surgery within 48 hours.
The Pentagon announced new long-term agreements with four defense companies May 13 to develop and produce large numbers of low-cost cruise missiles. And while the effort will focus mostly on the Army to start, it pairs with Air Force efforts to find more affordable munitions.