The Air Force added the CV-22 tilt-rotor aircraft to its list of 2007 unfunded priorities to try to answer a US Special Operations Command request that “this critical capability be fielded as soon as possible,” Maj. Gen. Stanley Gorenc told lawmakers yesterday at a Capitol Hill hearing. The upfront funds the Air Force is seeking would accelerate full operational capability by three years. Gorenc, USAF’s operational capabilities requirements chief, said the CV-22 Osprey would “greatly enhance SOF capabilities.” The Air Force version of the Osprey will replace 31 Air Force Special Operations Command MH-53s.
The last remaining T-1 Jayhawk at JBSA-Randolph, Texas, took its final flight to the "Boneyard" at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., on July 15. The 99th Flying Training Squadron will train pilots using T-6 and simulator until it gets T-7 Red Hawk in fiscal 2026.