Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld wrote a letter to Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner Nov. 30, saying DOD is concerned about legislation that would bring commercial oil drilling in closer to Florida’s Gulf Coast. Rumsfeld maintains such a proposal is “incompatible” with military testing and training activities. Florida’s Senate delegation has been lobbying DOD to weigh in on the proposal, which would allow drilling in areas up to 25 miles off the Gulf Coast, infringing on the military training area utilized by Air Force and Navy aircraft. A vocal opponent of the new drilling rule, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), says he opposes the 25-mile rule and a new proposal for a 150-mile buffer that would still “cut 84 miles” off the military range.
Boeing received a $2.47 billion Air Force contract Nov. 25 for 15 more KC-46s, bringing to 183 the number of Pegasus tankers on contract to all customers, foreign and domestic. The new contract—for Lot 12 of the initially planned KC-46 buy—is to be completed by 2029.
