An HH-60 Pave Hawk returns from an exercise mission July 12 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., as part of Red Flag 16-3. The exercise is one of four Red Flags at Nellis AFB, with this iteration focusing on air, space and cyberspace operations.
Airman 1st Class Nicolas Rose, 2nd Civil Engineer Squadron firefighter, looks for access points July 7 during an accident victim extraction exercise at Barksdale Air Force Base, La. Access points were identified to remove the rear hatch allowing access to victims in the back of the vehicle. Larger vehicles, such as minivans, provide additional challenges when extracting victims, and removing the rear hatch provides a more efficient way to remove victims while minimizing danger to first responders.
The 45th Space Wing supported SpaceX’s successful launch July 18 of a Falcon 9 Dragon spacecraft headed to the International Space Station from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. At about eight minutes after the launch, SpaceX successfully landed the Falcon 9 first-stage booster at Landing Zone 1 on Cape Canaveral AFS. This Falcon 9 Dragon launch was the 13th major launch operation for the Eastern Range this year, and marks the ninth contracted mission by SpaceX under NASA’s commercial resupply services contract.
Soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division prepare to jump July 12 on Sicily Drop Zone out of a C-17 Globemaster III during battalion mass tactical week at Pope Army Airfield, N.C. Army and Air Force units worked together during joint readiness exercise to improve interoperability for worldwide crisis, contingency and humanitarian operations.
F-35A Lightning II aircraft receive fuel July 13 from a KC-10 Extender from Travis Air Force Base, Calif., during a flight from England to the U.S. The fighters were returning to Luke Air Force Base after participating in the world’s largest air show, the Royal International Air Tattoo.