Free Republic

Lockheed Martin Corp. delivered its150th C-130J Super Hercules cargo plane to the California Air National Guard as the eighth and final C 130J assigned to the 146th Airlift Wing at Channel Islands Air National Guard Base near Oxnard. The aircraft was accepted on May 8 at Lockheed Martin's plant in Marietta, Ga., and flown to California by Brig. Gen. Darren W. McDew, Vice Commander of 18th Air Force. "The C-130J is an evolutionary leap in airlift technology compared to legacy C-130s," McDew said during the acceptance ceremony in Marietta. "This aircraft offers flexibility through greater range and payload for commanders...

LANCASTER - The joint-Lancaster-Palmdale "Salute to Troops" event scheduled for July 10 at JetHawks Stadium will include a visit by the commanding general of a storied California National Guard division and a star of the Iraq war, an M-1A Abrams battle tank. National Guard troops from Lancaster, Palmdale, and all across the Antelope Valley have served in Iraq. A Marine Corps Reserve helicopter squadron from Edwards Air Force Base is serving in Iraq now, and the other Marine Reserve helicopter unit based at Edwards served in Afghanistan last year. The Lancaster-based National Guard 756th Transportation Co. is back in Iraq,...

SACRAMENTO - The two-star general who commands California's 22,000 National Guard troops abruptly resigned late Monday amid allegations that he failed to properly prove his shooting skills for a visit to Iraq and helped line up a military flight for a Republican group planning to visit U.S. aerial defense headquarters in Colorado. Major Gen. Thomas Eres was forced to step down by the Schwarzenegger administration after a two-week investigation by the Times Sacramento Bureau into accusations that the general failed to meet Pentagon requirements for taking a trip into a combat zone and intervened on behalf of a Lincoln Club...