The US Navy awarded Textron Inc.’s Bell Helicopter and Boeing Co. $1 billion to buy components for 16 V-22 Osprey aircraft through September 2009. The contract pays for long lead components that are associated with the production and delivery of 14 MV-22 versions of the tilt rotor aircraft and two Fiscal 2007 CV-22 versions for the Air Force.
The Air Force displayed all the firepower it has amassed on Okinawa in an unusually diverse show of force this week. IIn a May 6 “Elephant Walk,” Kadena Air Base showcased 24 F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters, eight F-15E Strike Eagles; two U.S. Army Patriot anti-missile batteries near the runway; and…