More than two dozen Kentucky Air National Guard personnel are on their way to Afghanistan, where they will airdrop supplies and move troops throughout the country. Adjutant General Ed Tonini (pictured addressing Guard members and their families) says they're part of a larger rotation of 160 Kentucky-based troops who are carrying out the missions. "It's infinitely less dangerous to get resupplied by the air rather than over the ground and that is why this is so important," he saidThe members of the 123rd Airlift Wing left Louisville this morning.The Kentucky National Guard also announced that more than 1,300 members of its 149th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade will deploy to Iraq by next June, the largest such mobilization of Guard troops sinceWorld War Two.The brigade will provide security and perform other duties.
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.