An MH-53 Pave Low helicopter from the 20th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlburt Field, Fla., made its final flight Sept. 5, landing outside the Air Force Armament Museum near Eglin Air Force Base, its final resting place. The aircraft, tail No. 73-1652, is now part of the museum’s collection. “This is a wonderful aircraft that served its country proudly for over the past 35 years,” said George Jones, museum director. The Air Force will formally retire all of its remaining Pave Lows on Sept. 30. The CV-22 tiltrotor aircraft is replacing them. MH-53s flew during the Vietnam War and have continued to be a mainstay of operations since then, including heavy use in the war on terror. (Hurlburt report by 1st Lt. Lauren Johnson)
In the face of Chinese war plans to disrupt U.S. command-and-control networks in the event of a conflict, the Air Force needs to focus less on its “connect everything” efforts and prepare its combat aviators to fight without a constant connection to higher-ups, according to a new report from AFA’s…
