United States Navy C-130 Hercules Delivered

The U.S. Navy accepted its first C-130J-30 Super Hercules at Lockheed Martin's Marietta, Georgia, facility on 15 October 2026, Lockheed Martin said. The aircraft now moves to Northrop Grumman, the programme's prime contractor, for mission-systems integration to become the first E-130J Phoenix II, the airborne platform for the TACAMO mission that relays orders to the ballistic missile submarine fleet. According to Air & Space Forces Magazine, the Navy plans 31 E-130Js to succeed its 16 E-6B Mercury aircraft, three of them on contract. Collins Aerospace supplies the very low frequency communications system; the aircraft will be operated by Strategic Communications Wing 1 at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma.