New York Senators believe the Air Force will assign C-17 airlifters to the New York Air National Guard’s 105th Airlift Wing at Stewart ANG Base sooner rather than later, so Sen. Charles Schumer (D) and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D) have requested funding to upgrade the unit’s C-5A hangars to accommodate the new transport, reports MidHudsonNews.com. Schumer cautioned the online news media that it’s “not a done deal, but it’s looking good.” He added that he had “good vibes” that the C-17s might arrive in “coming months.” There was concern last fall that the plan to begin replacing the wing’s elderly C-5As in 2010 had gone off track. The Poughkeepsie Journal reports that Schumer said the New York delegation is “increasingly optimistic” and had requested the funding now so the unit “can hit the ground running.”
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.