Despite opposition from North Carolina congressmen and senators, the 440th Airlift Wing was inactivated as an Air Force cost savings measure. An article in the 6 March 2014 issue of the "Fayetteville Observer" noted that the Air Force has proposed the wing's inactivation and the retirement of its 12 C-130H aircraft. A follow-up article in the 11 March edition stated that state congressmen (Ellmers, Hudson, Price, and McIntyre) had spoken out against the proposed inactivation. North Carolina senators, Thom Tillis and Richard Burr, also opposed the inactivation.