Air Education and Training Command will be taking over training efforts for the Air Force’s unmanned combat fleet soon, AETC boss Gen. William Looney said. Air Combat Command is on track to hand off UAV training at Creech AFB, Nev. by Fiscal 2010, Looney confirmed, which he said would ease the burden ACC has endured in running both initial training and combat operations. This has been one of the challenges with training for new capabilities, particularly advanced concept demonstrations that are hurried into combat. “It gets pushed out the door and all of a sudden a [major command] is stuck doing both operations and training,” he added.
Boeing received a $2.47 billion Air Force contract Nov. 25 for 15 more KC-46s, bringing to 183 the number of Pegasus tankers on contract to all customers, foreign and domestic. The new contract—for Lot 12 of the initially planned KC-46 buy—is to be completed by 2029.
