The French Come Back for Seconds: 
Some 21 members of the French Air Force have started a second deployment to support war on terror operations in Afghanistan. The new phase, dubbed Operation Serpentaire, picked up May 26 where the first left off and will continue until October. Officials say that the first group conducted about seven percent of coalition Operation Enduring Freedom air sorties.
The F-35 Joint Program Office has officially announced plans to issue multiple sole-source contracts to Pratt & Whitney to upgrade the fighter’s F135 engine—a widely expected move after Pentagon officials indicated they would do so earlier this year instead of developing an entirely new engine.