Air Force Reserve boss Lt. Gen. John Bradley, speaking with reporters at Bolling AFB, D.C., on March 26, said his C-130 mobility crews are going into the Air Expeditionary Force mix—on a volunteer basis. He thinks that will be a better way to manage the heavy need for C-130 crews than the standard two-year mobilization call-ups. The Air Force Reserve’s 150 or so C-130 crews hit their mobilization limits last fall, according to Bradley. Active-duty AEF tours currently run 120 days, but Bradley did not indicate whether the Reservists would deploy for the entire time or a shorter tour, as some fighter crews now do. He gave no timetable when this C-130 volunteer approach would begin.
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
