Officials at JB Charleston, S.C., welcomed the arrival of The Spirit of Airborne, the Air Force’s 215th and newest C-17 transport, for beddown. Members of Charleston’s 315th Airlift Wing, an Air Force Reserve unit, flew the C-17 from Boeing’s manufacturing plant in Long Beach. Calif., to Charleston on Jan. 26, bringing the joint base’s Globemaster III fleet to 56 airframes. Along for the cross-country flight was Maj. Gen. Robert Kane, director of global reach programs in the Air Force’s acquisition office. The 315th AW operates and maintains Charleston’s C-17s under an association with the active duty 437th AW. The Air Force has ordered 223 of the 224 C-17s for which Congress has appropriated funds. The Air Force’s 214th C-17 arrived at Charleston in December.
The last remaining T-1 Jayhawk at JBSA-Randolph, Texas, took its final flight to the "Boneyard" at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., on July 15. The 99th Flying Training Squadron will train pilots using T-6 and simulator until it gets T-7 Red Hawk in fiscal 2026.