Nearly 300 copies of a newsletter was distributed in Alamogordo during SDDW Week, April 2026! It included this open letter to the commander of Holloman AFB, a large photo of the commander, information about our SDDW campaign at Holloman, events and activities scheduled throughout the week, and most importantly, resources for active duty who wish to say "Sir, No Sir!" (All attached)
Open Letter to 49th Wing C.O. Etheridge
April 5-11, 2026, ShutDownDroneWarfare.org
SHUT DOWN DRONE WARFARE
Colonel John T. Etheridge
Commander, 49th Wing
49 WG/CC, 1210 Forty-Niner Avenue, Suite 1
Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico 88330
Dear Colonel Etheridge:
We are writing to let you know that from April 5 – 11, 2026, we of Shut Down Drone Warfare will be holding our fourth annual week of education and action at Holloman AFB and in Alamogordo, NM, intended to encourage you, drone crew trainers and drone crews to take a conscientious stand against participating in any way in drone attacks.
We are undertaking this work because we are repulsed and saddened at being forced as taxpayers to be accomplices to the intimidation, terrorizing and killing of our sisters and brothers implicit in U.S. killer drone operations, which also violate U.S. and international laws intended to protect human rights, including the right to life.
We must note that the rampant use of U.S. Predator and Reaper drones since 2001 has been a major force in undercutting international laws and practices established a er World War II to limit the illegal use of force.
With respect to the Caribbean and Latin America, Marjorie Cohn, professor emerita at Thomas Je erson School of Law and an expert in international law, wrote in Truthout that “there is no legal justi cation” for the U.S. killing of civilians in boats: “If there was probable cause they were
Colonel John T. “Friar” Etheridge
committing crimes, there are procedures for arrest and trial with due process protections”.
In November 2025, CNN reported: “Most of the strikes (against boaters) have been carried out using MQ-9 Reaper drones, the sources said, which are remotely piloted aircra used by the military and are typically armed with Hell re missiles.”
MQ-9s are capable of carrying up to 10 Hell re missiles, the weapon that would be used in the boat attacks; and two 500 lb. bombs, for use against buildings and vehicles. This drone can also carry four GBU-39 guided 250 lb. bombs, which can be loaded with thermobaric explosives that can vaporize humans caught in their blast zone.
The lethal force carried by an MQ-9, and its notorious history of death- dealing without direct consequences for its operators, explains why the MQ- 9, and all armed drones, for that matter, are weapons of terror.
“Traumatizing Skies”, a report of the Al Karama human rights group, notes “the fear of the constant presence of drones in the skies that can kill any moment is sustained by technology that is politically and nancially cheap for the U.S...(creating) an equation of power where the vulnerable are nothing but dots on a screen.”
In “Drones and Targeted Killing: Legal, Moral, and Geopolitical Issues”, Professor Cohn and other experts argue that drone killing violates the U.N. Charter, International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights Law. A discussion of the illegality of drone killing can be found also at BanKillerDrones.org.
Now, we nd Reaper drones being used in attacks against Iran, in a war that violates international and U.S. law and is opposed by most people in the U.S. In addition, U.S. Reaper drones are providing targeting coordinates for Israel ghter bombers over Lebanon as well as Gaza.
The history of weaponized drones shows that they only spread and prolong war beyond what would happen without them.
In addition, moral injury and PTSD are well-documented chronic conditions of su ering being faced by drone operators, who sometimes seek relief in suicide. Indeed, we are sure that you know that Section 737 of the recently passed National Defense Authorization Act requires “a comprehensive study on the psychological e ects and mental health e ects of members of the Armed Forces and civilian personnel who operate or support unmanned aircra systems in combat operations.”
warfare complex. Our spring action weeks now take place at Holloman AFB, near Alamogordo, in Southern New Mexico. Our goal: To break the silence, educate the public and the military, peacefully interrupt “business as usual,” and promote GI Resistance and o er support to U.S. military personnel.
As nonviolent “angelic troublemakers” we declare Zero Tolerance for remote-controlled killing & surveillance...RESIST! Join Us: Help promote GI Resistance. NO WAR on IRAN!
Once again, we urge you to act immediately, conscientiously, to stop enabling drone attacks and attacks by other U.S. and Israel weapons and to act on behalf of the millions of people who are being killed, wounded, terrorized and driven from their homes in Latin America, the Middle East and Africa and on behalf of U.S. drone crews.
Sincerely, Nick Mottern,
Member, Veterans For Peace, for the Shut Down Drone Warfare Organizing
Team: https://www.shutdowndronewarfare.org
Reapers, other aircraft , used against boats.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtxch4R4Gcs
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/20/us/ politics/paci c-boat-strike-survivor.html
Reapers used against Iran.
https://www.airandspaceforces.com/mq-9s-over-iran- striking-and- nding-targets-but-taking-some-losses/
Illegality of boat and Iran attacks.
https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/legal-experts- underscore-illegality-of-u-s-boat-strikes-at-inter- american-commission-on-human-rights-hearing
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/04/ trump-administration-illegal-war-iran-experts
https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/families- of-trinidadian-men-killed-in-illegal-boat-strike- sue-trump-administration#:~:text=Burnley%20 v.-,U.S.:%20Demanding%20Accountability%20 on%20Caribbean%20Boat%20Strikes,and%20the%20 Alien%20Tort%20Statute.
Pentagon lack of concern for civilian deaths.
https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-defense- department-iran-hegseth-civilian-casualties
https://www.theatlantic.com/national- security/2026/03/us-civilian-casualties-iran/686292/
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/13/ military-leaders-warned-hegseth-not-to-gut-o c- es-that-limit-risk-to-civilians-00827722? clid=IwZX- h0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQKNjYyO- DU2ODM3OQABHqknDWycMz6GUglMmwm- MjhbgN6JQ5ooH29rKwwvjEnZmpyQ4m3ERn- RvWnxcR_aem_lD-lpy-mpaGVt10IjXaX0Q
Psychological impact on drone crews.
https://www.military.com/feature/2025/10/13/war- you-never-leave-hidden-psychological-toll-americas- drone-pilots.html
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8611566/
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/ PMC10013342/
https://www.usna.edu/CoreEthics/syllabus/ classes/ACFrOgBTfAOhF7Meu-wXb- XlUeG2XiC_sw8IzR5VyrMWpOA6a_ kdIBlWleF2LhihXjcMhBON-HjSZpz9hX9BOrj qdMQTdHrW1glV3kzPVvQpWzZv3lKjh2MPdP Kg8_NQtXzrL2NWbnAIK7ag2 n.pdf
Drone operations and conscience.
Here is a link to a letter by former U.S. drone operator Daniel Hale to Federal Judge Liam O’Grady prior to his sentencing of Hale to months in federal prison for releasing classi ed information to the press. https:// www.documentcloud.org/documents/21015583- daniel-hale-letter-to-judge-liam-ogrady/
(Report of Hale’s sentencing: https://www.airforcetimes. com/news/your-air-force/2021/07/27/ex-airman- sentenced-to-45-months-for-leaking-drone-info/
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HELP FOR MILITARY PERSONNEL WHO WISH TO SAY NO
These are among the foremost organizations providing information, legal assistance and guidance to U.S. military personnel who wish to not follow orders that are illegal or against their conscience. They also provide help and legal support for leaving military service.
Center on Conscience and War https://centeronconscience.org/ GI Rights Hotline https://girightshotline.org/
Special gratitude to Veterans For Peace, National & Chapters 63 & 55, for the Howard Zinn Fund for Peace & Justice award that has made it possible for us to do this work.
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NO U.S. DRONES for GENOCIDE! FREE PALESTINE! DEMILITARIZE!
Why Holloman AFB?
To oppose and resist the horrors of U.S. drone assassination, for many years we held weeklong Fall and Spring protests at Creech AFB, the “US Command Central” drone base located near Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2023 we expanded our Drone Resistance Campaign to include Holloman Air Force Base in southern New Mexico, the largest drone training base in the country, where 700+ drone pilots and operators graduate annually! Our new name is SHUT DOWN DRONE WARFARE! (Previously known as “Shut Down Creech”) We will continue to return to Creech AFB, Nevada, for fall action weeks;
Creech is the “central command center” for the illegal US drone warfare complex. Our spring action weeks now take place at Holloman AFB, near Alamogordo, in Southern New Mexico. Our goal: To break the silence, educate the public and the military, peacefully interrupt “business as usual,” and promote GI Resistance and oer support to U.S. military personnel.
As nonviolent “angelic troublemakers” we declare Zero Tolerance for remote-controlled killing & surveillance...RESIST! Join Us: Help promote GI Resistance. NO WAR on IRAN!
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PLEASE JOIN US AT THESE EVENTS
Join Us: Daily Vigils at Holloman AFB, commute hours: M-F 6:30-8:30am & 3:30-5:30pm
• Apr. 6, Mon, 11:30am: Film & Refreshments Noon: Screening/Discussion: National Bird. One of the best documentaries on the U.S. Drone Program that supports why we MUST abolish militarized drones! Q & A led by Nick Mottern, co-founder of Ban Killer Drones and member of Veterans For Peace. Alamogordo Public Library, 920 Oregon Ave, Alamogordo. FREE Refreshments, followed by lm screening.
• Apr. 9, Thurs, 6-9:30pm, Peace Party, Washington Park, live music. Featuring: Albuquerque band Paul Pino & the Tone Daddies (Southwest cowboy “ranchera swing” music), Rhiannon Lace and Emily Dequina. Open Mic for music & poetry.
• Apr. 10, Fri, 10:00am: Peace March/Rally
in Alamogordo: NO U.S. DRONES FOR
GENOCIDE or WAR, Demilitarize our planet
and End Drone Warfare Now! Led by Las
Cruces peace & social justice organizations
and NMSU students. Gather at south end of
Alameda Park.
• Apr. 10, Fri, 6:30pm: Film Screening/ Discussion: Earth’s Greatest Enemy, followed by Q & A. In honor of OUR MOTHER EARTH during Earth Month, a time to celebrate our planet and take action to protect it! In the Patron’s Hall at the Flickinger Center for the Performing Arts. 1110 New York Ave, Alamogordo NM