The Arkansas Air National Guard’s 188th Fighter Wing has received the last two of its newly acquired A-10 Warthogs, reports the Times Record. Once on the BRAC 2005 hit list, the unit has transitioned from F-16s to A-10s, receiving its first Hogs last spring. Wing commander Col. Kevin Wear told the newspaper that the unit’s pilots are all through their basic A-10 qualification training and progressing with more advanced training. Meanwhile, the Air Guard maintainers are acquiring expertise in A-10 maintenance, which, according to CMSgt. Mike Lensing, 188th FW aircraft superintendent, require more work than the unit’s previous F-16s. The 188th FW’s A-10s are slated for avionics and precision weapon upgrades before the unit deploys in early 2010.
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.