The 5th Special Operations Squadron of Air Force Reserve Command’s 919th Special Operations Wing formally transferred its flag May 23 from Duke Field, Fla., downstate to Hurlburt Field, its new home. The flag transfer was made in the squadron’s final MC-130P Combat Shadow flight. Having shed its MC-130Ps, the 5th SOS will settle into its new role within Hurlburt’s Air Force Special Operations Training Center, where squadron personnel will augment training units for the U-28 light transport aircraft, AC-130U gunship, and aviation foreign internal defense. Squadron members, almost all of which have extensive combat experience, will still perform combat tours. The squadron’s move is part of the broader ongoing integration of the 919th SOW into Hurlburt’s 1st SOW. (Hurlburt report by Jasmine DeNamur)
The emphasis on speed in the Pentagon’s newly unveiled slate of acquisition reforms may come with increased near-term cost increases, analysts say. But according to U.S. defense officials, the new weapons-buying construct provides the military with enough flexibility to prevent runaway budget overruns in major programs.
