Hegseth reversed the suspension of 8 S.C. National Guard Apache pilots grounded over a July 4 flyover

On July 4, 2026, eight AH-64 Apache pilots of the South Carolina Army National Guard — assigned to Alpha Company, 1-151st Attack Battalion — flew at low altitude over the state's coastline as part of "Salute from the Shore," an annual Independence Day flyover. The National Guard subsequently suspended all eight pilots from flight duties and grounded them pending review of the flight. Late on July 9, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth responded publicly to reports of the discipline, saying officials would "fix this."

The following morning, July 10, Pentagon chief spokesman Sean Parnell announced that "effective immediately, the suspension of all involved South Carolina pilots has been lifted," posting "Carry on Patriots" alongside Hegseth's statement. The reversal came within roughly a day of the suspensions and before any review reached findings on whether the flight complied with altitude, safety, or airspace rules that bind other Army aviators.

It was at least the second time Hegseth intervened from the top to cancel discipline arising from an Apache flyover, following his March reversal of suspensions and quashing of an Army investigation into a flyby of singer Kid Rock's Nashville-area estate. In each case the uniformed chain of command judged the flight serious enough to ground the crews and examine it, and the civilian Secretary of Defense publicly overrode that process — converting a routine flight-safety discipline question into one settled by political preference rather than uniform rules.