Members of the North Dakota Air National Guard’s 119th Wing in Fargo bid farewell to their last C-21A as it flew to its new home, the National Museum of the US Air Force. Aircraft No. 84-0064 departed on Aug. 28, leaving the Happy Hooligans without a manned flying mission for the first time in the wing’s 66-year history, according to the unit’s release. This also makes North Dakota the only state whose Air Guard does not currently have a manned flying mission, states the release. The wing is transitioning to an intelligence mission, the details of which are still in the works. Meanwhile, “efforts continue to pursue a new mission that includes aircraft,” states the release. The wing’s first C-21 arrived in January 2007; it operated eight of them. The unit was preparing to switch to flying C-27J transports, but those plans fell through with the Air Force’s decision to divest the C-27J fleet. (Fargo report by Capt. Dan Murphy)
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.