Some 15 Air Force civil engineers comprise a public works team supporting Army units at three different locations in Iraq. They technically are part of Det. 16, 732nd Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron at Balad AB, Iraq. Three of these airmen serve as the Power and Oil Infrastructure Team, currently working out of Kirkuk, where they assist Iraqis who run refineries and power plants and oversee some $32 million in construction projects in an area that is responsible for approximately 20 percent of Iraq’s oil production.
Boeing’s receipt of the 10th lot contract award for the KC-46 Pegasus this week leaves just three lots left to complete the Air Force’s buy of the tanker, although a further buy of 75 additional aircraft as a “bridge” to the Next-Generation Aerial-refueling System (NGAS) seems increasingly likely.