One of the legendary Doolittle Raiders helped usher a unit he commanded from bombers into the space arena, as Air Force Reserve Command reactivated the 380th Bomb Squadron as the 380th Space Control Squadron in Colorado Springs, Colo. On Sept. 6, retired Col. William Bower, the last commander of the 380th Bomb Group, parent of the 380th BS during World War II, passed the squadron colors to Col. Jeffrey Ansted, commander of Air Force Reserve Command’s 310th Space Wing. Ansted, in turn, turned over the colors to the first commander of the 380th SPCS, Lt. Col. Michael Assid. According to a Sept. 19 release, the ceremony took place under the wings of a restored B-25 bomber, called Barbie III, which then took attendees for flights around the area. Airmen of the 380th SPCS will form a classic associate unit with the active duty 16th SPCS at Schriever Air Force Base. (380th SPCS report by 1st Lt. Joseph Fixemer)
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.