Looking at the Downside?: The folks in New Mexico may have breathed a sigh of relief when the Air Force announced that it would station a unit of new F-22A Raptors at Holloman AFB, N.M., after it retires the base’s F-117 Nighthawks, however, now the Alamogordo Daily News reports the jubilee may be short-lived. The base may get new fighters, but it will lose personnel. The Daily News notes that Holloman will drop some 321 personnel in the switch from old to new fighter, according to an environmental assessment.
The Pentagon awarded a $2.02 billion contract for Lot 17 of F-35 engines to contractor Pratt & Whitney on June 5. Work on the F135 engine is expected to be completed by December 2025.