Air Force Reserve Command’s 913th Airlift Group flew its final C-130H sortie before converting to the new C-130J at Little Rock AFB, Ark., late last month, officials announced. The 913th AG integrated with Little Rock’s Active Duty 50th Airlift Squadron providing conversion training on the legacy C-130, and more recently the C-130J. “We’ve been balancing both, but now, we transition to the J,” 913th Operations Support Squadron operations officer Lt. Col. Keith Jasmin said in a release. With the divestiture of its 14 C-130Hs, the Reserve unit will transition from an active associate unit to a classic association, co-manning the Active Duty C-130Js. The 913th AG will be the first classic associate C-130J unit, according to the release. Reserve aircrew and maintainers will undergo training on the Super Hercules, and complete conversion to the new aircraft by September. The final C-130H training sortie from Little Rock departed on Jan. 28.
Amid NATO’s continued push to ramp up air defenses in Eastern Europe, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall swung by seven allied countries to boost relations last week, including those on Russia’s and Ukraine’s doorstep.