On one of the coldest days of the year so far, three OH-58D Kiowa Warriors geared up for their final flight off the installation, and Fort Rucker bid farewell to one of the most versatile airframes to grace the Alabama skies.

With the primary mission in the Army’s fleet as an aero-scout airframe, these agile birds are sights that will truly be missed over the skies of Fort Rucker, but despite their departure, Aviators will continue to be trained to top standards at the home of Army Aviation, said Lt. Col. Mark Gillespie, 1st Battalion, 14th Aviation Regiment commander.

“For me, it’s a bittersweet feeling to see these airframes go. I’m sad, but we will continue to keep that mission in the Army through the Aviation Restructure Initiative,” said the 1-14th commander who has been an OH-58D pilot for 20 years. “We won’t lose that mission, which is security and reconnaissance that is being developed into the AH-64D- and E-model Apache helicopters, as well as continue to develop pilots here at Hanchey (Army Airfield) through the UH-72 Lakota as it starts to be the primary trainer here at Fort Rucker.”