A combined force of active duty and Reserve airmen from Hill AFB, Utah, earlier this summer deployed the first complement of F-16 fighters to support operations in Afghanistan, according to a Sept. 20 commentary. Members of the active duty 388th Fighter Wing and Air Force Reserve Command 419th FW—as a newly formed associate unit—deployed together for the first time in 2007 to Southwest Asia, but, as we learn now, to support operations in Iraq. Airmen of the two Utah fighter wings have been providing close air support, including supporting the Afghan Presidential election on Aug. 20. Capt. Chris Seamans, with the 455th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, writes, “The war here is real and the men and women from Team Hill were not only ready for the challenge but set the standard for future units to maintain.”
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.