The Air Force has awarded Boeing a $57 million contract authorizing the company to begin working on sustainment block 16A for the service’s B-1 fleet. These upgrades will include changes to the bombers’ navigation, weapons delivery, radar, diagnostics, electrical multiplexing, communication, and navigation-management system software, and controls and displays, according to a company release. “The B-1 continues to be used daily in combat operations,” said Rick Greenwell, Boeing’s B-1 program director. “Keeping the platform relevant and ready is more important now than ever. These annual software block upgrades enhance the sustainability of the B-1s and provide needed capabilities that aid this nation’s defenders.” The block 16A upgrades will complement the new color cockpit displays, data link, and sensor capabilities included in previous upgrade packages, adding to the crew’s situational awareness, states the release.
A U.S. Air Force CV-22 Osprey crashed off the coast of Japan on Nov. 29, according to Air Force Special Operations Command and Japanese officials. In a release, AFSOC said the Osprey, assigned to the 353rd Special Operations Wing at Yokota Air Base, suffered a mishap off the coast of…