Former Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska, who died Monday at age 86 in an airplane crash about 285 miles southwest of Anchorage, was considered a great friend of the Air Force during his long tenure in the Senate, according to feedback we’ve received. Among his deeds, he was a supporter of the F-22 program and played a pivotal role in promoting the legislation that authorized an Air Force memorial in the national capital region. Stevens was an Army Air Forces transport pilot during World War II in China. He went on to become the longest-serving Republican Senator in history, in office from 1968 to 2009. “Senator Ted Stevens devoted his career to serving the people of Alaska and fighting for our men and women in uniform,” said President Obama in a statement. (Stevens’ Congressional biography) (Obama statement) (See Anchorage Daily News report, CNN report, and New York Times report) (For reaction to Stevens’ death, see Associated Press report)
Due to the prolonged delay in deliveries of the Tech Refresh 3 version of the F-35 fighter, Denmark is pulling six of its TR-2-configured F-35 jets stationed in the U.S. back to home base in order to consolidate aircraft and get better training for its pilots and maintainers, the Danish…