Echoing comments from Air Combat Command officials from the August declaration of the A-10C initial operational capability, John Sams, Boeing’s vice president for Air Force programs, said that the company’s $2 billion contract award in June for 242 wing sets for the Warthog fleet extends the life of the aircraft for “at least 20 years”—putting its service well into the late 2020s. A preliminary design review for the upgrade is set for next spring with a critical design review in January 2009.
The Space Development Agency says it’s on track to issue its next batch of missile warning and tracking satellite contracts this month after those awards were delayed by the Pentagon’s decision to divert funds from the agency to pay troops during this fall’s prolonged government shutdown.
