Two HC-130Ps deployed downrange last week in what is expected to be the final Active Duty Combat King deployment before the Air Force transitions to the new HC-130J Combat King II. The two aircraft, serial Nos. 64-4860 and 65-0982, left Moody AFB, Ga., March 21, along with 33 airmen from the 23rd Wing, in support of operations in Air Forces Africa, states a March 25 release. Of the 37 HC-130Js the Air Force plans to acquire, nine will be based at Moody. (See also Moody Gets First HC-130J.)
A combined Navy and Air Force program is seeking to build a smaller version of a ubiquitous air-to-air missile that could give advanced aircraft, such as the Collaborative Combat Aircraft, greater magazine depth in a high-end fight.