Modifications to USAF KC-135 tanker aircraft at Fairchild AFB, Wash., will bring 28 new jobs and $2 million in economic impact to the Spokane area, reports the Spokesman Review.com. The workers—13 full-time Air National Guardsmen and 15 Boeing personnel—will install mechanical brakes on the aircraft’s stabilizer trim system. To create the 13 Air Guard positions, the Washington ANG’s 141st Air Refueling Wing plans to convert some current part-time positions—the traditional weekend warrior type spots—to full-time positions.
The Air Force is leaning toward a less-sophisticated autonomous aircraft in the second increment of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft, the services chief futurist said. He also suggested that the next increment of CCA may be air-launched, a la the "Rapid Dragon" experiments conducted by the service in recent years.