T
he Mississippi and Utah Air National Guards worked together to aid rescue operations for the six miners trapped in a coal mine in Utah, reports MSgt. Burke Baker. The 172nd Airlift Wing at Allen C. Thompson Field, Miss., flew one of its C-17s to Kansas to pick up some underground video equipment and transport it to Salt Lake City, where airmen of the 151st Air Refueling Wing assisted the Mississippi Air Guardsmen. The operation was moving within hours of a help request from Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman. “This mission is typical of what the National Guard is all about,” said Col. William Crisler, 172nds AW commander.
The 301st Fighter Wing in Fort Worth, Texas, became the first standalone Reserve unit in the Air Force to get its own F-35s, welcoming the first fighter Nov. 5.