Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley says he would keep the Joint Cargo Aircraft program on schedule—the Army schedule—should USAF be given sole control over the program and fixed-wing tactical airlift, reports Roxana Tiron of The Hill. Lawmakers have been sparring over the issue, with Army supporters saying USAF control would delay a program more immediately vital to the ground service. The Army wants new JCA aircraft by 2009, while the Air Force planned to wait for its aircraft until 2011. Moseley, who said he is a “big believer” in the aircraft, maintained that he is “not seeing anything that would change the Army schedule.” (Moseley has expressed interest in the JCA as a potential new gunship in addition to its tactical airlift role.)
Bell Textron has won DARPA's contest for a no-runway, high-speed drone that will prove out technologies useful for special operations forces and possibly the Air Force's Agile Combat Employment concept. Bell's design converts a tiltrotor to a jet-powered aircraft able to fly at up to 450 knots.