The Mississippi Air National Guard’s 186th Air Refueling Wing received the first of eight KC-135s that the unit expects to have in place by the end of September, according to local press reports. The KC-135 touched down on June 10 at the wing’s home at Key Field ANG Base in Meridian, reported the Meridian Star. This KC-135 is one of the six that the Ohio Air Guard’s 121st ARW at Rickenbacker ANG Base is shedding to help constitute the Mississippi wing’s full eight-aircraft complement, according to the Ohio wing’s Facebook page. The Ohio unit will continue to operate a fleet of 12 KC-135s. The KC-135 mission is returning to Key Field. KC-135s used to operate there, but BRAC 2005 stripped the base of its tanker role. In mid-2011, Key Field gained the C-27J schoolhouse. However, with the Air Force’s divestiture of the C-27J fleet, a void emerged once again that the return of the tankers will fill. KC-135 conversion training for Key Field pilots and maintainers has already begun, according to a base release. (See also Meridian’s WTOK TV News 11 report.)
Anduril and General Atomics will develop their Collaborative Combat Aircraft for the Air Force, beating out Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman, the service announced on April 24. But any of the non-selected companies can compete to actually manufacture the eventual design, the Air Force said.