About that Dark Horse in the Tanker Race: Air Force’s two top leaders—Michael Wynne and Gen. Michael Moseley—tell Rebecca Christie of Dow Jones Newswires that they have reservations about the entry of Omega Air into the aerial refueler competition. Omega is the company that proposes to offer a contract refueling service rather than selling or leasing tanker aircraft to the Air Force. Of course, the Air Force opened this particular door, but some defense analysts see it as a ploy to ensure Congress believes the service has considered all options. The Navy does use Omega for some contract refueling. Christie reports that service leaders don’t think Omega can operate such a venture as cheaply as the Air Force can, but that they are willing to consider the company’s plan.
The six-week government shutdown did not affect the hours flown by Air Force pilots, a service spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine—avoiding what could have been a major blow at a time when flying hours are already lower than they have been in decades.
