Lockheed Martin last week delivered the 150th C-130J Super Hercules it has produced to the Air Force for use by the California Air National Guard’s 146th Airlift Wing at Channel Islands ANGS, Calif. Brig. Gen. Darren McDew, vice commander of 18th Air Force at Scott AFB, Ill., flew the new aircraft from Lockheed’s production facility in Marietta, Ga., to the Channel Islands unit, which now has all eight of its new J model Hercules tactical airlifters. According to a Lockheed release, airmen of the 146th AW just returned from a 20-month deployment to Iraq, where four J models flew 5,444 sorties, delivering 12,681 tons of cargo and hauling 70,350 personnel.
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.