Maj. Bob Battema with the 522nd Fighter Squadron flew the unit’s last F-16 Viper flight at Cannon AFB, N.M., on Dec. 21, preceding the formal inactivation of the squadron, reports the Clovis News-Journal. Cannon formally became an Air Force Special Operations Command base in October, and the 522nd FS was the last Air Combat Command fighter unit at Cannon to furl its colors. The conversion to an AFSOC facility is in full swing.
The first A-10 Thunderbolt II has left the Idaho Air National Guard as part of the Air Force’s service-wide effort to divest its close air support aircraft. In late March, the wing's A-10s took on their final mission when multiple aircraft and over 300 Airmen deployed to U.S. Central Command.