Striking Fleet Atlantic Staff Begins Exercise Strong Resolve02 - USS MOUNT WHITNEY, At Sea (NNS) -- Exercise Strong Resolve '02, one of the largest NATO exercises since the end of the cold war, began March 1 in Poland, Norway and the Baltic Sea. More than 26,000 military personnel from NATO and Partnership for Peace (PfP) nations are participating in the exercise, which encompasses two simultaneous crises in separate geographical regions. Forces will encounter two types of NATO missions: an Article 5 collective defense operation and a crisis response operation CRO).

F-14 Crashes Off USS John C. Stennis; Aviators Safely Recovered USS JOHN C STENNIS, At Sea (NNS) -- An F-14 Tomcat assigned to Fighter Squadron 211 aboard USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) crashed into the North Arabian Sea today (Mar. 8), as it was attempting to land aboard the aircraft carrier. Both of the crewmembers were safely recovered from the water using the ship's rescue assets. Neither appear to have suffered serious injuries. The plane was flying in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. For more information on USS John C. Stennis, go to http://www.cvn74.navy.mil.

Cuban AN-2 crashed near Havana, killing 17.

From 6th Fleet Public Affairs -GAETA, Italy -All three crew members of the helicopter that crashed into the Med.Sea March 12 have been declared deceased. The crew members, were attached to Helicopter HSL-46, home ported in Mayport Fla. Embarked aboard USS Hayler (DD 997), the SH-60B Seahawk was conducting a routine flight when it crashed. Hayler initiated search-and-rescue efforts immediately after losing radar contact and communications with the helicopter, which continued throughout the night before being called off the afternoon of March 13. The search, which included Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats (RHIB)from both Hayler and USS Ross (DDG 71) and was joined by a P-3 Orion from Patrol Squadron 10, a nearby British C-130 and another C-130 from Greece covered an area of 1,000 square miles. The Navy is conducting an investigation into the cause of the accident. For information 6th Fleet, go to http://www.c6f.navy.mil.

SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany(AFPN)-- A 23rd Fighter Squadron pilot here died March 20 in an F-16 Fighting Falcon crash. Pilot was on a training mission when air traffic controllers here lost radio and radar contact with him at about 9 p.m. The aircraft crashed in a flat, wooded, unpopulated area along a logging road near Lanscheid, Germany.

March 02 - WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- AF officials announced fiscal 2003 force structure.

Cannon AFB, N.M. -- The 522nd Fighter Squa. will upgrade its 18 F-16 Block 30 aircraft to 18 F-16 Block 50

Fairchild AFB,Wash.-Beginning in late fiscal 2003, the 141st Air Refueling Wing will replace its 12 KC-135E Stratotanker aircraft with eight KC-135R

Harrisburg International Airport, Pa. -- Beginning in late fiscal 2003,the 193rd Special Operations Wing will replace three EC-130E aircraft with three EC-130J aircraft

Hector IAP, N.D. -- Beginning in late fiscal 2003, the 119th Fighter Wing will replace its 15 F-16A/B Fighting Falcon aircraft with 15 F-16C/D aircraft;

Sioux Gateway Airport, Iowa -- As previously announced, beginning in late fiscal 2003, the 185th FW will convert from 15 F-16C/D aircraft to 8 KC-135E. The state-by-state list of force structure changes can be found online at http://www.af.mil/news/structure0321.html

The Diamondbacks of Fighter Squadron 102 on USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) fly their last mission with the F-14 Tomcat.

A Navy HH-1 Huey helicopter crashed Thursday, killing two crew members and injuring four.

WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- Four Canadian soldiers were killed and eight others seriously injured April 17 when a U.S. fighter jet dropped at least one 500-pound bomb on their position near Kandahar, Afghanistan, Canadian defense officials said. Details are sketchy, but U.S. Central Command officials confirmed a US ANG F-16 dropped "one or two" laser-guided bombs on the Canadians. Command officials did not speculate as to the cause of the accident, but said an investigation will be conducted. The Canadian troops were conducting a live-fire night exercise near Kandahar. Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien said President Bush called him to offer condolences and also to assure U.S. cooperation in the investigation.

Two crew members killed in F-4 air show crash at Point Mugu, Calif. The twin-engine QF-4 was attached to the Naval Weapons Test Squadron and was generally used as a target aircraft in the testing of missiles. The cause of the crash was under investigation.

FALLON, Nev. (NNS) -- An F/A-18A Hornet operating from Naval Air Station Fallon., Nev. crashed Friday(Mar.15),in the foothills of the Clan Alpine Mountains near Edwards Creek Valley, approximately 50 miles east of Fallon. The F/A-18A,a single-pilot aircraft, was attached to the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center at NAS Fallon. The pilot ejected safely and was recovered by a Navy helicopter shortly after the incident. The pilot is reported to have sustained minor injuries.The aircraft was conducting routine operations for training with the Naval Strike Air Warfare Center at the time. An investigation is being conducted to determine the cause of the accident. For information on NAS Fallon, go to http://www.fallon.navy.mil.

April 2002 - an Alphajet of the Patrouille de France crashed after a routine flight while landing at Salon de Provence - Saddly the pilot was killed in this accident.

HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah (AFPN) -- A C-130B Hercules is on its way to Tunisia, thanks to the efforts of the aircraft directorate here following a sale to the Tunisian air force through the State Department. The 1958 aircraft had been cocooned at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., since 1993 and had approximately 22,000 flight hours. Though the plane was in relatively good shape for its age, it took a cadre of workers to get the plane ready for its new assignment across the Atlantic in North Africa.

The ships of five nations with observers from seven others, left Sasbeo Harbor to conduct Pacific Reach 2002 off the coast of Japan.

TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla.(AFPN)-Air Force B-2 Spirit bomber aircraft will soon get a more precise radar-absorbing materials coating and have it done 80 percent faster.
Radar-absorbing materials and how they are applied play a major factor in being undetected by enemy radar. The amount of reduced energy, which returns to an enemy's radar,is directly proportional to the increase in stealth effectiveness, officials said.

BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE,La.(AFPN)-Considered by many to be the tried and true workhorse of the U.S. Air Force heavy bomber fleet, the B-52 Stratofortress turns 50 years old April 15. Although originally designed to penetrate the Soviet Union and drop nuclear bombs, the B-52 has served in a variety of conventional bombing roles in Vietnam, Iraq, Kosovo and most recently Afghanistan.