Alabama Aircraft Industries, Inc. filed a new legal protest against the Air Force March 12 concerning a $1.1 billion maintenance contract for the KC-135 tanker. The Birmingham News reported March 13 that the AAII filed the protest—its second complaint since last September in the ongoing dispute—based on the belief that USAF failed to comply with an earlier Government Accountability Office ruling in the company’s favor. AAII (formerly Pemco Aviation) lost out to Boeing last September in the original competition, but won a protest with the GAO last December over how the Air Force evaluated the risk in Boeing’s proposal. USAF agreed to go back and reevaluate, but after doing so, it concluded earlier this month that Boeing deserved the contract. Birmingham-based AAII says it needs the contract to maintain full employment. GAO has 100 days to rule.
US Space Command Should Always Be Led by a Guardian
Sept. 12, 2026
General Stephen Whiting took command of U.S. Space Command in January 2024, and if customary three-year tenures hold, his tour would end in January 2027. The question now before the President and Senate is who should follow him? Whoever they choose, it has to be a Guardian—and so should every successor…
