Late last month, according to a Dec. 11 release from McChord AFB, Wash., airmen deployed to support Operation Deep Freeze in the Antarctic airdropped 30 bundles of fuel and other supplies from a C-17 to a scientific camp at Antarctic Gamburtsev Mountain Province, one of the most remote locations on Earth. It only took the airmen three hours to deliver a load that would have taken days or weeks by other means, according to Capt. Joe O’Rourke, a 7th Airlift Squadron pilot supporting Deep Freeze. The C-17 Deep Freeze force has since made three more airdrops to the remote camp. (McChord report by SSgt. Eric Burks)
Earlier this week, the People’s Republic of China confirmed it is halting its nuclear arms control talks with the U.S., in retaliation for the U.S. continuing to sell arms to Taiwan. The move reinforces a “pattern of behavior” from Beijing, experts say.