Tennessee, like several other states that stand to lose their Air National Guard flying units, has filed a lawsuit challenging the Pentagon’s right to realign the 118th Airlift Wing, which flies C-130s from the airport in Nashville, without the governor’s say so. The Pentagon wants to move the C-130s to Kentucky and Illinois and send the unit’s aeromedical squadron to Texas. Other states filing lawsuits include Illinois and Pennsylvania.
The $4.26 billion Small Business Innovation Research contracting program widely used by the Air Force went into hibernation as the government shut down Oct. 1, but unless lawmakers strike a deal on reforms, the program could reach an abrupt end.


