The North Carolina Air National Guard’s 145th Airlift Wing has sent two C-130 Hercules aircraft equipped with modular airborne fire fighting systems and two more Herks loaded with support personnel and equipment to help fight wildfires in California, reports WRAL in Charlotte, N.C. California Gov. Arnold Schwarznegger had asked for the help as some 400 fires started over much of the state following lightning strikes. Other Air and Army National Guard forces from within and outside California have been responding, according to a June 24 release by the National Guard Bureau.
Promotions to the Space Force’s second highest enlisted grade, senior master sergeant, have surged to the highest level in the young service’s history, bolstering the senior NCO corps as officials plan to aggressively expand the force and especially the enlisted corps.