The Kentucky Air National Guard’s (ANG) 123rd Airlift Wing (AW) has taken delivery of its eighth C-130J Super Hercules military transport aircraft.
The aircraft arrived at the Kentucky ANG Base from Lockheed Martin on 25 August.
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The delivery of the last J-model aircraft marks the conclusion of AW’s transition from traditional H-model transport aircraft.
Since 1992, the unit has been operating the legacy C-130H fleet, of which the last aircraft retired in September last year.
This was followed by the transfer of the former eight H-model aircraft to the 166th Airlift Wing, based at the Delaware ANG.
The 123rd AW’s first new J-model aircraft from Lockheed Martin was delivered in November 2021.
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By GlobalDataThe new fleet of C-130J Super Hercules aircraft is the latest version available in the US Air Force’s (USAF) arsenal.
The versatile aircraft features modern instrumentation, capable of supporting a wide variety of operations, including air cargo and special missions.
It can also land on austere runways that other airlifters can’t reach.
The efficient engines and an extended fuselage in the J-model also provide an additional payload capacity of more than 44,000lb.
The modernisation effort provided various system improvements, with new aircraft featuring a new two-pilot flight station, fully integrated digital avionics and a dual inertial navigation system with GPS.
123rd AW commander colonel Bruce Bancroft said: “The C-130J has often been referred to as the stretch model.
“This means there are two additional pallet positions for equipment on top of six pallet positions that are normally associated with what we refer to as legacy C-130s.”
