Work has begun to restore the Vietnam War-era De Havilland C-7A and Martin EB-57B aircraft normally on display at the National Museum of the US Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. Restoration crews are repainting the C-7A—it spent years outdoors on display—and giving it the markings of the 483rd Tactical Airlift Wing, said Roger Deere, the museum’s restoration division chief. They are converting the EB-57B back to a B-57B configuration like those that served with the 3rd Bomb Wing in Southeast Asia from 1967-69, noted museum research historian Jeff Duford. This includes changing the aircraft’s cowling and removing its antenna. These two restoration projects are part of an ongoing renovation of the museum’s Southeast Asia War exhibit area that will run until spring 2012. The museum has a web page where it posts periodic updates on the restorations. (Dayton report by Sarah Swan)
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
