The Air Force has just st
ood up a new airlift squadron at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, to support the increased levels of US troops in the country. The 772nd Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, a C-130J unit, was officially activated on March 15 under the 451st Air Expeditionary Group. “Tactical airlift is a high-demand asset here, and we are at the leading edge of the Afghanistan surge of forces,” said Col. Ted Osowski, commander of the 451st AEG. He added, “The C-130J is a very capable aircraft and we are happy to have them; they’re going to be busy.” Indeed, already on the day prior to the formal standup, the first four of the squadron’s aircraft were flying missions. The 772nd EAS will have eight C-130Js and about 120 operations and maintenance personnel, all of which come from the Little Rock AFB, Ark.-based 41st Airlift Squadron, which deployed to Southwest Asia in early 2008 with its new J models and currently is the Air Force’s only active duty operational C-130J unit. “Being the only active duty C-130J unit in theater, we will have the opportunity to lay the foundation for future C-130J operations here,” said MSgt. Patrick Drozd, a C-130J loadmaster now with the 772nd EAS. (Kandahar report by SSgt. Zachary Wilson)
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.