Several news reports indicate the Air Force likely will review its award of the combat search and rescue replacement aircraft award to Boeing. Although there is no definite word from the service, the Government Accountability Office, as we reported in the last Daily Report, has received separate protests from losing CSAR-X competitors, Lockheed Martin-Agusta Westland with the US101 and Sikorsky with the H-92. Air Force officials have justified their selection of Boeing’s HH-47, saying Boeing’s helicopter met its requirements and Boeing could provide the HH-47 earlier than the other competitors could provide their entrants. GAO has until late February to render a decision.
The Air Force is spending heavily on F-22 improvements through the end of the decade, suggesting it may not retire the jet in 2030 as it previously planned. New sensors, fuel tanks, communications, and electronic warfare systems are among the upgrades that comprise the package.