Free Republic

Army deserters told fellow soldier they committed the crime, court papers say. Two U.S. Army deserters were arrested Friday and charged with killing the Rev. Mark McCalla, a former Franklin pastor. First-degree murder charges were filed against Stephen C. Wilson, 19, of Cincinnati, and Daniel R. Smith, 22, of Newport News, Va. The men were captured after 9 p.m. Friday in downtown Columbus, according to Sgt. Dana Norman of the Columbus Police Dept. homicide bureau. The men told a fellow soldier they had shot and killed McCalla, according to criminal complaints filed in Wayne County, W.Va., magistrate court. Wilson and...

"The strong will stand, the weak will fall by the wayside." For Air Force tactical air control party airmen, these words are more than just a motto; they also serve as a battle cry. Wherever American military forces are found, TACP airmen are sure to be nearby. Nicknamed the "Air Force infantry" because they spend most of their career assigned to Army units, tactical controllers can most often be found embedded with special operations forces. "Our primary role is to direct combat strike aircraft against enemy targets," said Staff Sgt. Alan Lesko, TACP noncommissioned officer in charge with the Army's...

<p>Two darkened helicopters rocked through a nighttime storm that had smothered the Panjshir Valley in clouds. The MH-53J Pave Lows -- the largest choppers in the Air Force inventory -- suddenly felt like tin to the soldiers riding in back. One helicopter was flying blind, its electronic sensors having failed.</p> <p>"Pull up! Pull up!" someone shouted from the cockpit as a mountainside appeared out of the black.</p>