Free Republic

A US-contracted surveillance plane crashed in the Philippines on Thursday morning, killing all four personnel on board, including one US military service member, according to US Indo-Pacific Command. The crash occurred in Maguindanao del Sur in the southern Philippines. Images from the crash site, confirmed by a US defense official, show the wreckage of a Beechcraft King Air 350 in a rice field. The official said the service member killed in the crash was a US Marine. It is unclear if the three defense contractors were also US citizens. The twin-engine turboprop aircraft was contracted by the Defense Department to...

SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- The United States deployed an RC-135U reconnaissance plane to one of its air bases in Japan, an aviation tracker said Wednesday, a move seen as aimed at beefing up surveillance of North Korea. One RC-135U Combat Sent arrived at Kadena Air Base in Japan's Okinawa on Tuesday from Offutt Air Force base in Nebraska, Aircraft Spots said in a Twitter post. The U.S. air force is known to operate two RC-135Us, which collect and analyze electronic radar transmissions. The deployment came amid concern the North could conduct additional missile launches. A military source said that...