The leaders of Air Force Reserve Command’s 920th Rescue Wing at Patrick AFB, Fla., don’t bemoan the fact that they are flying some of the Air Force’s oldest aircraft—HC-130s tankers and HH-60 helicopters. Instead, they tell Norman Moody of Florida Today, that the aircraft are “still reliable” largely through the efforts of the unit’s highly experienced maintainers. Rep. Dave Weldon (R-Fla.) blames the Clinton Administration for the Air Force’s elderly fleet of aircraft, telling the newspaper that the Bush Administration and Congress “have been working to procure new aircraft.”
With a shrinking fleet and growing operational demand, Air Force Special Operations Command sees the new OA-1K combat scout aircraft as key to a “new era,” officials say.