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122nd Fighter Wing
The Indiana National Guard 122nd Fighter Wing will replace their current A-10 “Thunderbolts II for the F-16 Fighting Falcon. The Indiana unit will receive 18 F-16s. (Mike Heilman)The Air Force has announced that the 122nd Fighter Wing, Fort Wayne Air National Guard Base was selected to receive 18, F-16, Block 40 Fighting Falcons to replace the A-10C Thunderbolt II aircraft they currently fly and maintain. The Pentagon’s proposed March 4 budget for 2015 includes cutting the A-10, leaving the F-16 as its replacement. The 122nd Fighter Wing previously flew the F-16 at Fort Wayne from 1991 until 2010 when replaced by the A-10C.
Returning to the F-16 allows the 122nd to remain in fighters until the unit can vie for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Col. David Augustine, 122nd Fighter Wing Commander, said, “Our strategic goal remains to bring the JSF to Fort Wayne. Although we’ll hate to see our A-10s depart, this is the right mission at the right time to bridge us to the Joint Strike Fighter! Our rich history in the F-16 will once again return.”
Kokomo, Indiana’s Fifth Annual Wings and Wheels Air and Car Show
By Mike Heilman & Ed Wells
Cliff Robinson races a motorcycle down the runway in his modified PT-17 Stearman. Robinson, an airshow veteran, has appeared in more than 300 airshows during his career. (Mike Heilman)It was the little show that could. The 5th annual Wings and Wheels Air and Car show was held June 8 at the Kokomo Indiana Municipal Airport (OKK). The one-day event was billed as the largest airshow in the state of Indiana in 2013. Kokomo can make that claim since the Indianapolis and Gary airshows cancelled due the Congressional sequester. The event drew an estimated 4,000 people.
The annual event is used as a fundraiser with proceeds from food sales and VIP seating going to local charities. The Event Coordinator, Pam Wild, explains “Our show is completely free, no admission at all. The pilots are not monetarily compensated in any way. All they get is a T-shirt and breakfast and lunch. They get gas for the show and the trip to get here. It is an all-volunteer show. We have the support of the City of Kokomo and they are our biggest sponsor.”