Bell’s baseball team has started in a similar fashion as it did in 2024, when the Eagles surprised everyone by winning the City Section Open Division championship at Dodger Stadium.
The Eagles are 8-1 with wins over Palos Verdes and West Torrance. Gustavo Ramirez had a grand slam last week in a mercy-rule win over Granada Hills Kennedy.
Many of the players who were sophomores on the 2024 team are coming through this season, led by pitcher/infielder Jayden Rojas, who’s 2-0 on the mound and hitting .385.
Bell won the 2024 City title at Dodger Stadium.
(Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)
Senior pitcher Adolfo Esquivel is 3-0 with 22 strikeouts in 17 innings. He also leads the team with 10 hits.
Bell faces San Pedro in its next nonleague game on Wednesday against San Pedro.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy.
The three F-15Es shot down over Kuwait yesterday met their demise at the hand of a Kuwaiti Air Force F/A-18 Hornet, according to a report by TheWall Street Journal’s Lara Seligman. While it was rumored to have been a ground-based air defense system that took the aircraft out, it does make sense that the friendly fire incident was the result of a series of air-to-air engagements, based on the damage to one of the aircraft. That being said, we cannot independently confirm the report at this time.
SCOOP: A Kuwaiti F/A-18 fighter jet was the cause of the accidental shootdown of three American F-15s on Sunday, according to three people familiar with initial reports of the incident. https://t.co/5xKB9jxwQs
Seligman’s story is based on three sources “familiar with initial reports of the incident.” Just one Hornet was supposedly involved, launching three missiles and taking down the three Strike Eagles. Thankfully, the crews all survived. The report goes on to state that the ‘blue-on-blue’ incident occurred as multiple Iranian drones were penetrating Kuwaiti airspace. One of these impacted a base that resulted in the death of six Americans.
Footage of an F-15 falling out of the sky this morning over Kuwait, in an apparent “friendly fire” incident involving the U.S. Air Force. pic.twitter.com/GQvryfJ4C4
As we have recently explored in detail, mistaking friendly tactical aircraft for real threats in a very complex and quickly morphing battlespace isn’t unprecedented, as it has happened multiple times before, including in relation to Kuwait on two past occasions. The air-to-air aspect of the story is certainly intriguing and would help explain how the crews survived the shoot-downs. We saw one F-15E spin into the ground with its vertical tails missing and its engines on fire. While this is catastrophic damage, it is not typically what you would see in most engagements from heavier surface-to-air missiles, although every engagement is different, so we can’t rule it out. But three shoot-downs and everyone made it out alive sounds like tail-aspect shots made by smaller yield weapons.
Also, if the Super Hornet employed passive heat seeking missiles (AIM-9 Sidewinder), the F-15E pilots would not have known they were being engaged until the weapon detonated. There are caveats to this, including if the Hornet had used its radar to assist in the Sidewinder lock. But Kuwaiti Hornets were clearly in the airspace at the time defending against drones, so even being painted by their radar may not have indicated how serious the situation was about to become.
We will continue to report as the investigation into this bizarre friendly fire event unfolds.
Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy.
The commander of Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) has said that he would like to field F-15E Strike Eagle and F-15EX Eagle II combat aircraft to help the command meet its commitment to supporting the overall Air Force mission. AFRC commander Lt. Gen. John P. Healy was speaking at the Air & Space Forces Association’s annual Warfare Symposium, where TWZ is in attendance.
Headquartered at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, the AFRC is responsible for three numbered air forces, 34 flying wings, 10 flying groups, a space wing, a cyber wing, and an intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance wing. It also has other subordinate units that help to accomplish its total-force missions.
Lt. Gen. John P. Healy, Chief of Air Force Reserve, speaking at the NATO Interallied Confederation of Reserve Officers (CIOR) Winter Meeting in Norfolk, Virginia, on January 28, 2026. U.S. Army Maj. Tara-Lee Gardner
Healy was addressing how AFRC is grappling with how best to contribute to the Air Force’s 10-year fighter jet plan, which calls for purchasing more F-15EXs, F-35s, and F-47s, as it aims to have nearly 1,400 combat-coded tactical aircraft in service by 2030. The commander noted that the plan is not only “pretty ambitious” but also that, while it has been submitted to Congress, it is still very much a work in progress.
Nevertheless, Healy said that, whatever happens, the Air Force’s future fighter plans will rely heavily on the AFRC. At the same time, this organization is facing upcoming combat aircraft retirements, including the A-10 attack jet, which the Air Force wants to withdraw entirely.
U.S. Air Force Capts. Andrew Glowa, lead, and William Piepenbring, both with the 74th Fighter Squadron out of Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, fly two A-10Cs over the skies of southern Georgia, August 18, 2014. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jamal D. Sutter/Released Tech. Sgt. Jamal Sutter
“As the commander of Air Force Reserve Command, I am keenly aware that some of my units are scheduled to divest without any plan of recapitalization,” Healy said. “Some could say I am loud and annoying when it comes to how we can ensure that we can maintain this fighting force,” he added, noting that in certain AFRC units, 100 percent of the airmen are combat veterans, and that he wants to ensure “that talent, that experience, doesn’t walk out the door during a normal, planned divestment.”
Healy is hopeful that the historic practice of aircraft divestment without recapitalization, something he said has existed over the last 14 years, is now on the way out.
“I think we’re finally at a point where we’re putting a stop to that,” Healy said. “We’re looking at maintaining our classic associations where we have them and recapping as the active duty can. For the remaining fighter units that we have that are divesting or scheduled for divestment, our full expectation is that we’re going to recap those with new weapons systems.”
There’s no doubt that many of the AFRC’s planned divestments are badly needed, with upward of 80 percent of the command’s fleet now being considered “legacy.” Healy continued: “You know, it’s code for old. Some of these airplanes need to be divested, but we also need to ensure that we are proportionately, concurrently fielded with new equipment.”
That’s where the F-15E and F-15EX could come into play.
“For every one of these A-10 units that are going away, I’m looking at if there’s a means by which we can get an F-15 unit behind it, whether it’s a Strike Eagle or an EX.”
A U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 336th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron parks on the runway before a flight at Kadena Air Base, Japan, May 13, 2025. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Luis E. Rios Calderon Senior Airman Luis E. Rios Calderon
Meanwhile, Healy said he’s also “pressing hard” to ensure that ARFC units divesting from the F-16 will be backfilled with F-35 stealth jets.
“We’ve got that combat capability,” Healy added. “We’ve got that combat experience. We need to leverage that.”
The AFRC boss also made the financial case for continuing to re-equip his command’s squadrons with new (or, failing that, newer) equipment.
According to the Air Force’s own factsheet, the AFRC provides around 14 percent of the total force within the service, while consuming only around four percent of the total manpower budget.
“My job is to constantly remind the programmers and remind the chief and the secretary of the value proposition, the advantage of the Reserve, because at the end of the day, we’re providing a little bit more money that we can reinvest into other things as well.”
Healy said that, when it comes to operating the F-16, an AFRC squadron does that “$12 million cheaper than the active duty can.”
A crew chief assigned to the 482d Maintenance Squadron marshals out a 67th Fighter Squadron F-16 at Homestead Air Reserve Base, Florida, April 4, 2025. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Lionel Castellano Master Sgt. Lionel Castellano
The savings on F-15 units would be even more compelling, Healy argued, with an AFRC Strike Eagle squadron working out as $28 million cheaper than the active-duty equivalent, or $24 million in the case of the F-15EX.
There remains a question, however, around just how feasible it might be for the ARFC to get the F-15E or F-15EX. For all their undoubted capabilities, these types are both in short supply and high demand.
Originally, the Air Force had a minimum number of 144 F-15EX aircraft to replace the F-15C/D force. Some of the Eagle units have switched to other platforms since then, but units that fly A-10s, F-16s, and even F-15Es could end up getting F-15EX if the service chooses to go such a route. It seems quite possible that further growth of the program could occur, and that would seem to be a prerequisite if the ARFC is to get the Eagle II as well.
A formation of four U.S. Air Force F-15EX jets, assigned to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, fly over the Gulf of America, November 21, 2025. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Blake Wiles Staff Sgt. Blake Wiles
When it comes to the F-15E, the Air Force inventory numbers 218 aircraft, of which 119 are powered by the older F100-PW-220 turbofan engines that produce some 23,500 pounds of thrust each. The other 99 have the F100-PW-229s, each of which is rated at 29,000 pounds of thrust.
The Air Force previously aspired to retire the Dash-220-powered jets by the end of Fiscal Year 2028.
The possibility of transferring F-15Es from active-duty units to Air National Guard (or AFRC) units is something that TWZ has discussed in depth in this previous feature.
As far as the AFRC is concerned, the best chance of getting its hands on F-15Es will almost certainly be provided by the return stateside of the two squadrons of Dash-229-powered Strike Eagles currently at RAF Lakenheath in England. These are due to be replaced by F-35s in the future. For the time being, they are the only permanently forward-deployed F-15Es, which remain the service’s first choice for a wide variety of critical missions around the globe.
A U.S. Air Force F-15E from the 48th Fighter Wing, RAF Lakenheath, approaches a KC-135 Stratotanker from the 100th Air Refueling Wing during exercise Ocean Sky, over the Atlantic Ocean, October 15, 2025. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Chloe Masey Airman 1st Class Chloe Masey
Another option, and one we have explored in the past, would be to pass on the Dash-220-powered jets to the AFRC, and it is somewhat surprising the Air Force hasn’t floated this idea before when it has sought to offload the older, less-powerful Strike Eagles.
Asked by TWZ about the likelihood of F-15Es making their way to his command, the AFRC commander responded: “I am optimistic that we’ve at least got people listening to the value that we provide, the combat capability we provide, the experience that we provide. We’ve proven it over and over again. We’re efficient, we’re experienced, we’re 100 percent accessible as a reserve force, and we’re lethal in all these mission sets. I think our message is sounding in a positive way with senior leadership within the Air Force. I’m not going to cash the check yet, but I’m optimistic about our future in terms of recapitalizing some of our units.”
Many of the savings that the AFRC makes are a result of the efficiencies that are baked into its ‘business’ practices. Of the 67,000 airmen that make up the command, 14,000 are full-timers.
“Those full-timers are the ones that keep the lights on day-to-day,” Healy continued. Our business model is such that a typical unit will have 25 percent full-timers, and they run that unit for 28 days of the month. It’s only that one weekend a month that we’re at 100 percent — full strength. So those cost savings, right there, are what allow us to realize benefits. It adds up when we start putting it into big numbers like that.”
Whether examples of the F-15E Strike Eagle or F-15EX Eagle II end up on Air Force Reserve Command ramps remains to be seen, but in Lt. Gen. John P. Healy, that component has a strong advocate for making that happen.
