The last C-130E transport assigned to the 86th Airlift Wing at Ramstein AB, Germany, left the base for good on Monday, marking a historic step in the unit’s transition to the new C-130J model. This C-130E, with tail number 1299, departed for Poland, which is acquiring five C-130Es from the Air Force under a foreign-military-sales arrangement. “We’re sad to see it go,” said MSgt. Jay Mitchell, flight engineer with Ramstein’s 37th Airlift Squadron, of the C-130’s departure. But he added the wing is looking forward to operating the C-130Js. The 86th AW is in the process of building a force of 14 C-130Js. (Ramstein report by SrA. Amanda Dick)
It'll take up to 18 months for Lockheed Martin to deliver the 100 or so F-35s that went directly from production line to storage, awaiting the completion of Tech Refresh 3 testing. Customers haven't complained about the order in which the backlog is being delivered.