The Air Force said farewell to its last C-130H active-duty squadron in Japan.
The 36th Airlift Squadron, based at Yokota Air Base, recently sent off its older H Hercules models, Air Mobility Command officials told Military.com on Monday.
"Yokota Air Base was the last active-duty location to operate the C-130H," AMC spokesman Maj. Korry Leverett said.
"Active-duty conversion to the C-130J started in 2014 and occurred at Dyess [Air Force Base, Texas]; Little Rock [Air Force Base, Arkansas]; Ramstein [Air Base, Germany]; and Yokota," Leverett said in an email.
AMC said the C-130H -- one of the oldest models of the Hercules airlift cargo plane -- is still flown in the Air Force Guard and Reserve at more than 25 locations.
Roughly 50 years old, depending on model, C-130s are flying around-the-clock in operations around the world.
The J model specifically has been touted for its more agile capabilities.
During AMC's Exercise Mobility Guardian this summer, airmen practiced hot refueling training to "pass fuel as the engines are still running" on the C-130J models, according to Lt. Col. Jeremy Wagner, Mobility Guardian director.
"That's a capability we're trying to make standard across all of Air Mobility Command for the J models," Wagner said in July of the newest C-130 variant.
Much more flexible and agile than its larger cousin, the C-17 Globemaster III, Lockheed Martin Corp.-made C-130s can carry approximately 45,000 pounds and airdrop loads up to 42,000 pounds.
Recently, Military.com traveled aboard a C-130H3 to Iraq. Check out more of that coverage below.
- Flying with the 'Blue Collar Guys' on a C-130 Mission in Iraq
- Not So Herculean: Anatomy of a C-130 Breakdown in Iraq
