The Air Force has expanded the potential beddown locations for the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter joint/international schoolhouse operation from Eglin AFB, Fla., proper to area airfields within the broader Eglin reservation, so officials revealed during the public scoping meetings that began Aug. 24. In addition to Eglin main, presented as Alternative 1 in the service’s draft supplemental environmental impact statement, are Duke Field (Alternative 2) and Choctaw Field (Alternative 3). Each alternative has a bevy of subalternatives and options range from constructing new runways, adding parallel runways, and moving runways, to using a combination of Eglin, Duke, and Choctaw capabilities. Continue
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.