Airmen of 314th Airlift Wing at Little Rock AFB, Ark., are working to bring a little-known part of their history back to the base. In their spare time, about 20 volunteers are restoring a Piasecki H-21 helicopter so that it can be displayed in the base’s Heritage Park, according to a May 16 release. The 314th AW’s historian, Mark Wilderman, came up with the idea to refurbish the H-21 after he discovered the wing flew the helicopters in the late 1950s and Kirtland AFB, N.M., was planning to get rid of one it had on display. MSgt. Matthew Tabor, quality assurance chief inspector, said everyone thinks of C-130s when they think of the 314th AW, but the wing has “been in the troop-carrying business for a long time,” according to the release, “and this is a big piece of that.” The rehab is expected be finished in June; the chopper will placed next to a C-130 display.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
