Active and Air National Guard airmen at Hickam AFB, Hawaii, are absorbing their current new mission, flying and maintaining C-17 airlifters. Pilots of the 535th Airlift Squadron last week participated in a four-ship air drop training mission, getting needed multi-element training and sustaining aircrew proficiency. The Hickam C-17s already have flown real-world missions when they aided the flood-ravaged island of Kauai. Hickam also is slated to get the Air Force’s latest fighter—the F-22.
The U.S. began extensive air and artillery strikes against Islamic State group targets in Syria on Dec. 19 in retaliation for the killing of three Americans on Dec. 13 by a gunman affiliated with ISIS, U.S. officials said.
