We guess Air Force officials made their case about getting a few more C-17 airlifters to serve as replacements as the heavily used airlifters wear down, or, it could be that lawmakers just consider the Pentagon-imposed cap of 180 an arbitrary number. Either way, House appropriators sided with House and Senate authorizers by adding money to the 2007 defense bill to purchase more C-17s. (House appropriators added $789 million to replace three C-17s.) The effect, if passed by the House and Senate, would be to extend Boeing’s C-17 line beyond the expected 2008 shutdown date.
A U.S. Air Force B-52 bomber flew from Europe across the Middle East to the Persian Gulf on July 25 in a 32-hour flight, as conflicts continued to roil the area with U.S. troops coming under attack in Iraq and Syria on July 25 and July 26, U.S. officials told…