Air Force, industry, state, and local officials on Tuesday ceremoniously opened the new Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul Technology Center near Tinker AFB, Okla. Once fully completed, the MROTC will comprise 17 hangars, including 1.6 million square feet of back-shop, industrial, logistics support, classroom, and research space. Finished since construction began last spring is the first hangar, where Boeing and Air Force technicians will perform system upgrades for E-3 AWACs aircraft. Officials expect to see two more hangars completed in mid-2008.
The use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border this week—which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to abruptly close the airspace over El Paso, Texas—will be a “case study” on the complex web of authorities needed to employ such weapons near civilian areas and the consequences of agencies…
