Lockheed Martin last week delivered the 24th new-build C-130J transport destined for beddown with the 317th Airlift Group at Dyess AFB, Tex., bringing the unit to within four airframes of its planned full complement. Air Force Expeditionary Center Commander Maj. Gen. William Bender ferried the C-130J, tail number 5712, from the company’s production facility in Marietta Ga., to Dyess on Dec. 13, according to a posting at Lockheed Martin’s Code One Magazine website on that same day. When the 317th AG receives its 28th and final C-130J—slated for delivery next year—the base will be home to the world’s largest Super Hercules operating unit. The unit’s 23rd C-130J arrived in September.
U.S. Air Force F-15C Eagles have roared out of Barnes Air National Guard Base, Mass., for the last time. The 104th Fighter Wing’s last three F-15Cs departed the base Oct. 23 for the “Boneyard” at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., ending the aircraft's era on the frontlines of homeland defense.
