The Air Force has awarded Boeing a $49.5 million contract to integrate the Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing System into 145 F-15E aircraft, the company announced March 24. Installation in the first F-15E is expected in October 2008, with contract completion in December 2010, Boeing said. “When this contract is implemented, JHMCS will be integrated on F-15C, D, and E aircraft,” said Phil King, Boeing’s JHMCS program manager. This agreement is the ninth production contract for JHMCS, which is used in F-15s, F-16s, and Navy F/A-18s.
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.