The United States Air Force (USAF) announced that Mansfield-Lahm Air National Guard Base in Ohio is its preferred location for a new cyber warfare wing at the department.
The new cyber warfare wing will create around 175 new jobs, and USAF will look to fund the wing in part by retiring eight C-130 Hercules aircraft. The department will need congressional approval, and the request will be reflected in the USAF fiscal year 2022 budget proposal.
“Retiring these legacy aircraft will create the fiscal and manpower flexibility required to design and field the future force needed to meet national defense requirements,” Lt. Gen. David Nahom, USAF Plans and Programs deputy chief of staff, said in a press release.
The creation of the cyber warfare wing will help fulfill future requirements for the Air Combat Command post. The proposed reduction in aircraft inventory would bring the department’s stock of C-130 Hercules aircrafts from 287 to 279 total.
The Mansfield-Lahm Air National Guard Base is currently home to USAF’s 179th Airlift Wing. The retiring C-130 Hercules aircrafts would be reduced from the Mansfield-Lahm inventory.
