Duluth-based F-16s of the Minnesota Air National Guard’s 148th Fighter Wing deployed to Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, on a two-month close-air-support rotation. The deployment is the unit’s first since completing a two-year conversion from older F-16s to newer F-16 Block 50 airplanes in April, according to Duluth’s Aug. 13 release. In the deployment run-up, the wing “completed an intense, focused training program,” said 148th FW commander Col. Frank Stokes. “The Bulldogs are the most prepared, best equipped, and most highly trained unit I have ever had the privilege to witness,” added Stokes. Pilots and support personnel rotated to Nellis AFB, Nev., for training three times in the last year, flying suppression of enemy air defense sorties at Red Flag there early this year, states the release. The 300-airman-strong contingent left Duluth for Afghanistan between Aug. 5 and Aug. 11. (Duluth report by TSgt. Scott Herrington)
The Air Force may be operating the oldest, smallest air fleet in its history, but it hasn’t stopped keeping those planes modernized and combat-effective against the latest weapons and threats. Josh Erlien, director of life cycle integration for Tactical Aircraft Electronic Warfare at BAE Systems, says his mission is to…