Tag Archives: tyndall afb

The US Military Celebrates Christmas Around the World

Despite deployment and austere conditions at locations around the world, the US military tries to provide its troops the resources and opportunities they need to celebrate Christmas, as well as the freedom to interact with local communities to honor the Christmas season. In most, but not all, cases, the military isn’t afraid to say “Christmas” or “Hanukkah” or otherwise acknowledge the point of what’s being celebrated — despite the occasional criticism from Scut Farkus. Some recent examples, from Colorado Springs to Japan:

Sailors at Fleet Activities Sasebo (Japan) brought Christmas gifts to orphans through the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program.

Led by their battalion commander, LtCol Lawson Bell, Soldiers out of Fort Carson, Colorado, participated in an all-night march to downtown Colorado Springs, where they teamed with Catholic Charities to support the Marian House Soup Kitchen.

The III MEF Band at Read more

USAF F-16 Pilot Killed in Crash in Middle East

The Air Force announced Tuesday that Capt William DuBois was killed when his F-16 crashed “in the Middle East” in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.  Officially, the crash was declared not combat related and was said not to have occurred in Iraq or Syria.  CNN reported it occurred in Jordan.

As with all such incidents, the Air Force will investigate the cause.  The crash follows another recent fatal crash out of Tyndall AFB just last month.

Also at FoxNews and AF.mil.
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F-16 Crashes in Gulf, Pilot Killed

An F-16 pilot from Tyndall AFB was killed last Thursday morning when his jet crashed into the Gulf of Mexico.

The pilot was civilian Matthew LaCourse, a retired USAF Lieutenant Colonel and 1978 US Air Force Academy graduate. LaCourse was a part of the 82nd Aerial Targets Squadron, which is the unit fielding the pilotless QF-16s as full-scale drones.  He had previously topped 2,000 hours in the F-4/QF-4, which preceded the QF-16.

As with all mishaps, Read more

First QF-16 Downed as Target

After it just recently served as a surface-to-air target for the first time, the Air Force announced the first successful downing of the pilotless QF-16 drone:

The first unmanned QF-16 Viper struck down over the Gulf of Mexico Sept. 5 was part of a joint effort between the Test and Training Division at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., and the 82nd Aerial Target Squadron here at Tyndall.

The QF-16 is slated to eventually replace the current QF-4 full-scale drones. Read more