Showing posts with label Eglin Air Force Base. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eglin Air Force Base. Show all posts

Friday, August 23, 2019

After Captain died, Eglin Air Force changed physical fitness test

Eglin Curtails Run Portion of PT Test After Captain's Death


Military.com
By Oriana Pawlyk
22 Aug 2019
"I am deeply saddened over Tranay's death," said Lt. Col. Timothy Stevens, AFOTEC commander, in the release. "The pain of her absence has touched each and every one of us. Our thoughts and prayers are with Tranay's family, her friends and our fellow airmen during this difficult time."

Physical fitness tests were briefly suspended earlier this week and outdoor cardio testing will be curtailed for the remainder of the summer at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, after an airman died Saturday. She had completed her PT test on Friday.

Capt. Tranay Lashawn Tanner, 29, was transported to the Eglin Hospital on Saturday morning with health complications, according to a base news release. Tanner, assigned to the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC), Detachment 2, was later moved to the Fort Walton Medical Center due to the "serious nature of her condition." She died Saturday afternoon.
read it here

Thursday, August 22, 2019

7th Special Forces mourn loss of two Green Berets

Army Posthumously Promotes Two Green Berets Killed in Afghanistan


Military.com
By Hope Hodge Seck
22 Aug 2019

Both men belonged to 1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) out of Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
Two Special Forces soldiers killed Wednesday in Afghanistan during combat operations have been posthumously promoted, officials announced Thursday.

Master Sgts. Luis F. Deleon-Figueroa, 31, and Jose J. Gonzalez, 35, died in Faryab province, Afghanistan, at the country's northern border with Turkmenistan, according to a release from U.S. Special Operations Command. They died of wounded sustained from small arms fire due to combat operations, according to a Pentagon release. The incident is under investigation.
read it here

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Eglin Air Force Base supporting Airman after 3 year old son was murdered

Eglin Air Force Base community rallies around airman after her son's murder


The Northwest Florida Daily News
By JIM THOMPSON
Published: March 18, 2019

EGLIN AFB (Tribune News Service) — The full range of Eglin Air Force Base resources are being marshaled around a relatively new airman whose husband killed their 3-year-old son and then attempted to kill himself last Friday.

Airman 1st Class Darrelly Franken, 38, had been assigned to Tyndall Air Force Base, but was reassigned to Eglin AFB in December, in the wake of Hurricane Michael, according to Eglin spokesman Andy Bourland. The October hurricane scored a direct hit on Tyndall as it roared across the eastern Florida panhandle on Oct. 10, all but destroying the installation.

Bourland wasn't certain in a Monday interview, but said he believed the home where Franken and her husband, 61-year-old Frederick Franken, had lived with their young son, Frederick Franken Jr., while stationed at Tyndall was destroyed by the hurricane.

On the afternoon of March 15, Darelly Franken arrived at the family's home to find her husband and son on the floor. Shortly afterward, Okaloosa County sheriff's deputies responded to the residence, according to witnesses. Details of the incident have not yet been released by the Sheriff's Office.

The child was pronounced dead at the scene, and the medical examiner's office was scheduled to perform an autopsy on Monday.

Frederick Franken was listed in critical condition at Fort Walton Beach Medical Center on Friday, and had improved to fair condition as of Monday morning, according to hospital spokeswoman Denise Kendust. Frederick Franken is not in military service, Bourland said.
read more here


Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Florida Veterans Needing "maintenance” medications Beware

VA pharmacy to stop filling prescriptions on base

Northwest Florida Daily
Jim Thompson
November 7, 2017
EGLIN AFB — Officials say the pharmacy at the Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic at Eglin Air Force Base is not closing.
By late next year, however, prescriptions will no longer be filled there. Veterans who need prescriptions filled will eventually need to do so through either private pharmacies or through the mail.
The VA pharmacy’s transition to a “first-fill contract” means that prescriptions for medications that a veteran needs immediately — deemed medically necessary by the prescribing physician — will have to be filled through local retail pharmacies. 
As opposed to those “emergent” prescription needs that will be filled by private pharmacies, veterans’ “maintenance” medications — prescriptions for chronic long-term conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol — will continue to be provided through the VA’s mail-out pharmacy services and sent directly to veterans’ home addresses.read more here
One more step in killing off the VA? Wonder who is making out on this deal because it sure as hell isn't our veterans!

Sunday, September 4, 2016

Wife Fights For Justice As Air Force Veteran Sits in Jail

'I can't be silent any longer' - Wife of veteran fights for husband's release
North West Florida News
Kelly Humphrey
September 3, 2016

A medical board issued him an honor-able discharge after four years and 10 months of service. The loss of his military career devastated him, Angela said, and he would later be diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

“He attempted suicide shortly after that,” she said. “It broke his heart to be out of the Air Force.”
At 9:18 a.m. on April 9, 2015, Aaron Wanless sent an email to his psychiatrist’s office at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs clinic at Eglin Air Force Base.

“This medication is killing me,” he wrote. “My brain is malfunctioning.”

At the moment he sent the message, the 35-year-old Air Force veteran was a fugitive, having spent the previous night eluding sheriff’s deputies following an armed altercation at his father’s house.

Shortly after sending the email, Aaron surrendered and was taken to jail, where he has remained for 17 months without bond as his case winds it way through the judicial system.

Aaron had confided in Angela when they first met that he’d experienced depression. She and Melendez attribute it to a serious motorcycle accident he had while stationed at Patrick Air Force Base near Cocoa Beach in 2001.

“Several bones in his lower leg were shattered,” Melendez wrote. “For a while, doctors thought they may have to amputate his leg. Aaron was in rehab for months.”

Although he would go on to serve with his Air Force unit at ground zero in New York following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, by 2002 the military decided he was no longer fit for service.
read more here

Monday, August 29, 2016

Colin Kaepernick Can Sit On It!

Ok, so a guy gets millions to toss around a football but refused to stand up during the National Anthem.
Colin Kaepernick Sits During National Anthem Before Packers vs. 49ers
CNN
By Adam Wells
Featured Columnist
Aug 27, 2016

I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.

That must have made sense to him anyway.

Well if that is what he chooses to focus on, then ya the country, in his mind, would suck.  Bet it sucks that he's been so oppressed to have to be able to hire someone to go to the bank for him. But hey, he doesn't want to be selfish, so I bet he's donating all his millions to communities around the country. After all, he's got plenty of it.


Colin Kaepernick signed a 6 year, $114,000,000 contract with the San Francisco 49ers, including a $12,328,766 signing bonus, $61,000,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $19,000,000. In 2016, Kaepernick will earn a base salary of $11,900,000, a roster bonus of $2,000,000 and a workout bonus of $400,000. Kaepernick has a cap hit of $15,890,753 while his dead money value is $19,697,260.

So since those things mattered so much to him, he decided to make that much money? Did he join any community centers to make lives better or volunteer for any of the charities out there trying to make a difference everyday?

See that's the biggest problem. Some people would rather sit back, complain and then refuse to do anything to make anything better.

There are men and women risking their lives everyday while they are either hated or ignored until someone needs them to show up. They still do it for a lot less money. Here is just one of them.

Once an NFL running back, now he's on the Army Ranger School staff


Spec. Glen Coffee works in the boat house at Army Ranger School's installation at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. He joined the Amy after starring as a football running back at Alabama and playing for the San Francisco 49ers. DAN LAMOTHE/THE WASHINGTON POST

Friday, August 14, 2015

Master Sgt. Andrew McKenna Recommended for Silver Star

Green Beret killed in Afghanistan recommended for Silver Star
Army Times
By Michelle Tan, Staff writer
August 13, 2015
"He was phenomenal at his job, but I wish the world would see how genuine he was and how much of an American patriot he really was,"
Master Sgt. Paul Ross

Master Sgt. Peter McKenna Jr. is the third American soldier to die in Afghanistan this year.

(Photo: Courtesy 7th Forces Group)

The Special Forces soldier killed last week in Afghanistan has been recommended for the Silver Star, the nation's third-highest award for valor, for his actions during a vicious and bloody attack in Kabul.

Master Sgt. Andrew McKenna also will posthumously receive a Purple Heart, officials from 7th Special Forces Group confirmed Wednesday to Army Times.

Even among some of the Army's best and brightest, McKenna stood out.

"He's the best of us," said Sgt. 1st Class Tim Kennedy, who served in 7th Group with McKenna. "He personified every single positive characteristic that Special Forces guys wished they exemplified. He's caring, empathetic, remarkable at everything he does, an amazing shooter, and a good human, first and foremost of all of those things."
During his 17-year career, McKenna earned the Bronze Star Medal with V device, four Bronze Star Medals, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Master Free Fall Parachutist Badge, the Master Parachutist Badge, the Air Assault Badge, and the Special Forces Tab, among several other decorations.
read more here

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Two Airmen Killed During Training in Florida

2 Airmen Killed During Parachute Training in Florida 
Military.com
Associated Press
Aug 05, 2015


EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- Air Force officials have released the names of two special forces airmen killed in a parachute training accident in the Florida Panhandle.

The Air Force said Tuesday that Sgt. Timothy A. Officer, 32, and Sgt. Marty B. Bettelyoun, 35, died from injuries they received Monday during military freefall training at the Eglin Air Force Base range. 
read more here

Monday, May 18, 2015

Wounded Warrior Program Sports At Eglin Air Force Base

Wounded Warrior competition provides new mission, comradery for severely injured veterans
Associated Press
By MELISSA NELSON-GABRIEL
MAY 18, 2015
"I lost my identity after the military. I felt lost. Being part of the Air Force Wounded Warrior program, it helps you to know that there is more to life than the military. I am proud of my service but I have more to accomplish," the Las Vegas, Nevada, native said.

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. — As an Air Force crew chief in Afghanistan and Iraq, part of Sgt. Tim McDonough's dangerous mission was recovering the remains of soldiers killed in combat.

An explosion in Afghanistan in 2005 changed his life. He suffered a brain injury and nine surgeries later, McDonough has seizures, limited range of motion and host of other medical problems. Even worse, he lost the camaraderie he had with other airmen.

"You are the cream of the crop, the best of the best. You get injured and put off to the side," said McDonough, 40, of Spokane, Washington.

But he has a new mission that has given him much-needed focus and self-esteem. He will represent the Air Force at the 2015 Department of Defense Wounded Warrior Games in Quantico, Virginia, next month.

His sport? Archery.

McDonough is one of about 200 athletes from the Air Force, Marines, Navy and Army who will compete in eight sports, including basketball, swimming and track and field.
read more here

Saturday, May 9, 2015

First Female Lightning II Fighter Pilot Takes to Air Over Florida

Lt. Col. Christine Mau becomes first woman to fly Air Force’s newest fighter jet 
BY CNN WIRE
MAY 8, 2015
Lt. Col. Christine Mau puts on her helmet before taking her first flight
in the F-35A at Eglin Air Force Base on May 5, 2015.
(PHOTO: Staff Sgt. Marleah Robertson/U.S. Air Force)

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. — The F-35 is the Air Force’s newest fighter plane, and the service says it needs some of its most experienced aviators in the cockpit of the jet.

One of them is Lt. Col. Christine Mau, who flew combat missions in the F-15 Strike Eagle in Afghanistan. This week, she became the first woman to fly the Lightning II jet.

Despite her experience in Afghanistan, Mau, the deputy commander of the 33rd Fighter Wing Operations Group at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, said completing her first flight in the F-35 was a special moment.

“It wasn’t until I was taxiing to the runway that it really struck me that I was on my own in the jet,” Mau said in an Air Force press release. “It felt great to get airborne. The jet flies like a dream.”
read more here

Friday, March 13, 2015

Marines Release Names Black Hawk Crash

Marines confirm victims in Florida crash 
WITN News
Mar 13, 2015

The Marine Corps has released the names of seven members of MARSOC who died in Tuesday night's Black Hawk crash in Florida.

Major General Joseph Osterman identified the Marines as
Captain Stanford Shaw of Basking Ridge, NJ,

Master Sgt. Thomas Saunders of Williamsburg, Virginia,

Staff Sgt. Marcus Bawol of Warren, Michigan,

Staff Sgt. Trevor Blaylock of Lake Orion, Michigan,

Staff Sgt. Liam Flynn of Queens, New York,

Staff Sgt. Kerry Kemp of Port Washington, Wisconsin,

Staff Sgt. Andrew Seif of Holland, Michigan.

All were from the 2nd Special Operations Battalion of MARSOC.
read more here

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Soldiers and Marines Missing After Army Helicopter Crash in Florida

From NBC


UPDATE
U.S. military helicopter crashes off northwest Florida; human remains found
CNN
By Greg Botelho
March 11, 2015

Story highlights
The four National Guard members' next of kin have been notified, spokesman says
Four aircrew members, seven Marines were on board the helicopter when it went down

(CNN)Seven Marines and four Army aircrew were presumed dead Wednesday, according to a U.S. Defense official, after their Black Hawk helicopter crashed into waters off the Florida Panhandle during a nighttime training mission.

By late Wednesday morning, human remains had washed ashore in the area near Eglin Air Force Base, base spokeswoman Jasmine Porterfield said.

She didn't specify what was found, noting a search-and-rescue mission remained underway. Still, there was little hope for a miracle, with Gen. Martin Dempsey -- the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, making him the U.S. military's highest-ranking member -- expressing his condolences "at the loss of the folks on that helicopter."

"(The crash is) a reminder to us that those who serve put themselves at risk, both in training and in combat," Dempsey said from Washington. "We will work with the services to ensure that ... their family members will be well cared for."
read more here

Army Helicopter Crashes in Florida: 7 Marines, 4 Soldiers Missing
ABC News
BY CASSANDRA VINOGRAD
24 minutes ago

Seven Marines and four soldiers were missing early Wednesday following an Army helicopter crash in Florida, officials said.

A search and rescue operation was launched after one of two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters participating in a routine nighttime training mission crashed, Eglin Air Force Base spokesman Andy Bourland said.

Bourland said it was too soon to say what caused the crash, but that there were "weather issues" overnight.

"This is search and rescue," he stressed, adding that visibility was limited due to darkness and fog. "We have not declared the status of the 11 personnel on board at the time."

Search and rescue teams have located some debris which began to collect in the search area, Bourland added.
read more here

Friday, December 5, 2014

Staff Sgt. Matthew R. Ammerman Killed in Afghanistan

DoD Identifies Army Casualty
Release No: NR-606-14
December 04, 2014

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Staff Sgt. Matthew R. Ammerman, 29, of Noblesville, Indiana, died Dec. 3, in Zabul Province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered from small arms fire while conducting a clearing operation.

He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Crestview Florida On List for Successful Veterans

Where Do America’s Most Successful Veterans Live?
SpareFoot
Military Storage Station
Elizabeth Whalen
October 27, 2014

(Linked from AL.com)
From the first day of basic training to the last day of a long deployment, and all the time in between, members of the military develop high levels of discipline and focus. By the time they’re discharged, they know more than the average Joe or Jane about hard work.

Many also have developed specialized skills, such as flying helicopters or running sophisticated computer networks, that employers value highly.

In fact, in some parts of the U.S., veterans are substantially better off than their non-veteran counterparts in terms of income, employment and education. In honor of Veterans Day, MilitaryStorage.com assembled a list to salute the places where America’s most successful veterans live. These are the 12 metro areas where veterans are doing the best compared with non-veterans. Many of these areas, but not all of them, are home to military bases.


6. Crestview, FL

Eglin Air Force Base
Crestview, about 50 miles northeast of Pensacola, is home to Eglin Air Force Base.
Metro population: 253,618
Veterans’ median income: $47,064
Non-veterans’ median income: $21,578
Veterans’ employment rate: 94 percent
Non-veterans’ employment rate: 94 percent
Veterans with a bachelor’s degree or higher: 35 percent
Non-veterans with a bachelor’s degree or higher: 22 percent

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Vietnam veteran receives Distinguished Service Cross 46 years after herosim

Vietnam veteran receives valor Distinguished Service Cross
Fay Observer
By Drew Brooks Military editor
Posted: Sunday, July 27, 2014

A former soldier was honored with the military's second-highest award for valor earlier this year, 46 years after his act of heroism.

Retired Master Sgt. Patrick N. Watkins Jr. received the Distinguished Service Cross in a ceremony at Eglin Air Force Base in May.

The medal rewards Watkins for his actions on Aug. 23, 1963, according to the citation.

At the time, he was a staff sergeant assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group, then headquartered at Fort Bragg.

Watkins was at the headquarters of Command and Control North the morning of Aug. 23, when the compound became the focus of a well-coordinated attack by a North Vietnamese Army sapper force, according to the citation.

Watkins was wounded in the initial assault but was able to organize a small reaction force to repel the attack and rescue wounded Americans.

The soldier led other Americans to defense positions through a "gauntlet of machine gun fire and grenades," according to the citation. He "disregarded his own safety to direct the recovery of the many wounded men and repeatedly engaged and killed enemy sappers."
read more here

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Army Ranger Earns Silver Star at Eglin Air Force Base

Army Ranger Earns Silver Star
Army.mil/News
by Aniesa Holmes
Mar 12, 2014

FORT BENNING, Ga. -- Sgt. 1st Class Anthony Fuentes was presented the Silver Star Medal March 4 at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., for his actions in 2011 during an insurgent attack in Kunar Province, Afghanistan.

Fuentes, who is now with the 6th Ranger Training Battalion, was presented the Silver Star by Maj. Gen. H. R. McMaster, Fort Benning's commanding general.

While serving as a platoon sergeant for B Company, 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, in October 2011, Fuentes led the defense of Shal Mountain during Operation Rugged Sarak. For more than a week, the company was in near-continuous enemy contact as insurgents sought to defeat coalition efforts to build a permanent Afghan base.

Fuentes, under heavy recoilless, rocket-propelled grenade and small arms fire, led the defense of his lightly armed and undermanned section and repelled a nighttime enemy attack intent on overrunning his patrol base. He supervised the casualty collection point and enabled the successful evacuation of nine casualties.

Fuentes said he could only think of the men who fought beside him as he received the medal.
read more here

Sunday, January 12, 2014

Air Force Chief Master Sergeant Legacy Helping Others

Chief Master Sergeant Joseph W. Hubbard passed away unexpectedly on the afternoon of Jan. 6, 2014, at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.

Chief Hubbard was 41 years old, born on May 29, 1972, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Joe faithfully served his Lord and Savior, loved and adored his family, and invested his career in serving America and caring for airmen. He is survived by his wife, Karen; his daughter, Katherine; and his son, Joey. He is also survived by his father; his mother; two brothers; and two sisters.

Chief Hubbard entered the Air Force on Aug. 21, 1990, initially serving as a security specialist at Barksdale Air Force Base, La. In 1994 he transitioned into communications and computer system operations. Chief Hubbard's service included duty at Kunsan Air Base, Korea; KI Sawyer Air Force Base, Mich.; Robins Air Force Base, Ga.; Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont.; Heidelberg, Germany; and Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash. Additionally, he served as the Superintendent of the Secretary of the Air Force's Legislative Liaison Office at the Pentagon, and as the Superintendent of the 53d Test Management Group at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.

Chief Hubbard earned a Bachelor of Science degree, cum laude, in management from Park University and a Master of Business Administration degree, with honors, from Webster University. As Chief Hubbard does every day, he had spent Monday focusing his time, energy, and attention caring for the airmen of the 53d Test Management Group.

A viewing and visitation will be held at 10 a.m., on Monday, Jan. 13, at the First Baptist Church of Niceville, Fla., with a memorial service to follow at 11 a.m.

An additional visitation and memorial service will be held at the Loudon Funeral Home in Loudon, Tenn., on Jan. 15, at 11 a.m., followed immediately by a burial with full military honors at Lakeview Cemetery in Lenoir City, Tenn.

In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations in Chief Hubbard's name to the Fisher House or the Bob Hope Village

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Florida Eglin AIr Force Base soldier killed in Afghanistan

DoD Identifies Army Casualty
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
No. NR-017-13
November 15, 2013

The Department of Defense announced today the death a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Staff Sgt. Richard L. Vazquez, 28, of Seguin, Texas, died Nov. 13, in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when his unit was attacked with an improvised explosive device while on dismounted patrol in Panjwai, Afghanistan.

He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.

Friday, March 19, 2010

Heritage Museum Spearheads Veterans Project

BEHIND THE WALL: Museum Spearheads Veterans Project, Will Host Traveling Memorial
Plans to bring the Traveling Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall to Northwest Florida are well underway. The Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida (HMNF) will bring this national traveling replica to Okaloosa County in June 2010. The presentation is part of a series of programs and events presented by the regional history museum that honor the 75th anniversary of Eglin Air Force Base and highlights the area unique military heritage. The HMNF will host the traveling memorial, related exhibits, speakers and ceremonies at the Northwest Florida Fairgrounds, one of three U.S. Vietnamese refugee camps coordinated by Eglin Air Force Base and local volunteers in 1975. The highly decorated veteran Retired Air Force Col. Geoege "Bud" Day is scheduled to speak at ceremonies opening public visitation to the Memorial this summer.

(PRWEB) March 19, 2010 -- This summer, the Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida (HMNF) is bringing the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall and Traveling Museum to Okaloosa County.

This half-scale replica of the memorial in Washington, D.C. - also known as The Wall That Heals - has been traveling around the country since 1986 bringing with it a message of history, hope and healing. The museum is taking every opportunity to engage its military-rich community in every aspect of the presentation.

"Our museum is not simply a storehouse. By bringing the Wall we are actively engaging the community in a project that honors history and the people who were a part of it." - Michelle A. Severino, Director, Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida
Because education is central to the HMNF's mission the Wall visit is being used as an opportunity to educate teachers, students and the general public about a largely misunderstood conflict, a pivotal time in American history, the role of the local military bases and the stories of involvement shared by local veterans, refugees and others.

While the Memorial is on view, the HMNF will feature unique, never-before seen collections and original materials including items from the Vietnam Center and Archives at Texas Tech University, the History Office at Eglin Air Force Base and Arturo Studios. Images from the Brian Grigsby Collection at Texas Tech University pertaining to Eglin its role as a site for Vietnamese refugee camps - known as tent city - will be featured. A multi-media presentation developed by students from University of West Florida will include footage of student interviews with veterans from WWII, Korea and Vietnam.

A motorcycle escort over the state line and through the county will include hundred of local veteran, active duty, civilian riders.

Lectures by historians, scholars and honored veterans including George "Bud" Day are scheduled during the exhibit period. Special ceremonies will be held as well. See a complete listing of scheduled activities at wwww.veteranswallokaloosa.com

WHAT: Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall and Traveling Museum
WHEN: June 17-20, 2010
WHERE: C.H. "Bull" Rigdon Fairgrounds, Fort Walton Beach, Florida
WHO: Presented by the Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida (HMNF)
WHY: Honor History, Local Veterans and the 75th Anniversary of Eglin Air Force Base; An Educational Opportunity for the HMNF; An Opportunity for the HMNF to put local history/experience into a larger national/international context.
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/03/prweb3601234.htm

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

F-15 pilots rescued in Gulf of Mexico dies

1 of 2 F-15 pilots rescued in Gulf of Mexico dies
Pair of single-seat fighters likely collided during training, Air Force says

BREAKING NEWS

updated 23 minutes ago
EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - One of the two pilots rescued from the Gulf of Mexico after their fighter jets crashed Wednesday has died, the Air Force said.

The two jets likely collided during a training exercise, but the pilots ejected and were rescued after their single-seat F-15C Eagles disappeared Wednesday afternoon off the Florida Panhandle, Eglin Air Force Base spokeswoman Shirley Pigott said.

The other pilot was reported to be in good condition.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23262052/