The C-130 Hercules has been doing some heavy lifting on the front lines in Southwest Asia. Recently, a group of maintainers with the 379th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron’s structural repair shop performed a month of repairs and maintenance at a forward location on a C-130 from Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, that suffered structural damage when a tire blew. The Hercules was flown from Manas AB, Kyrgyzstan, to the healing hands of the 379th EMS for repairs to its gear door. The team ordered replacements for some damaged parts and made others, returning the Herc to duty without a stateside visit.
Three of four congressional committees with influence over defense policy have voted to change the official name of the Department of Defense to the Department of War—but final approval of the Pentagon rebrand is months away and not yet assured.