Boeing has announced that the Royal Air Force will acquire a seventh C-17 transport aircraft under an agreement with the British Ministry of Defence. Boeing is scheduled to deliver this aircraft in December 2010. “The RAF has an urgent need for additional airlift capability,” said Robin Philip, head of MoD’s commercial air support. He added, “We know firsthand the capabilities and reliability the C-17 brings to every mission, and that’s why we’re adding another one to our fleet.” The RAF’s current fleet of six C-17s has logged more than 50,000 flight hours to date in missions that include supporting operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and ferrying humanitarian relief supplies to Southeast Asia after tsunamis and Pakistan after earthquakes. The new C-17, like the RAF’s others, will operate out of RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, England.
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
