The Air Force’s 31st Munitions Squadron at Camp Darby, Italy, and the 6th/927th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at MacDill AFB, Fla., were among the winners of Secretary of Defense Maintenance Awards for 2009 announced last week. Each unit won a field-level award in the small-unit category. These annual awards honor outstanding achievements in military equipment and weapon systems maintenance across the Defense Department. The MacDill squadron is a Reserve associate unit comprising active duty airmen from the 6th Air Refueling Wing and Air Force Reserve Command’s 927th ARW. The winners will receive their awards on Oct. 28 at a banquet in Phoenix. (DOD release)
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.