The Pentagon recently approved the ground testing and eventual first flight for a restored World War II-era B-29 Superfortress, called “Doc,” from a non-joint-use runway at McConnell AFB, Kan. The B-29 received an airworthiness certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration earlier in June, meaning “first flight for Doc is imminent,” said Jim Murphy, the restoration project manager for Doc’s Friends, in a news release. The approval now lets the flight crew schedule high-speed taxi testing and eventually takeoffs and landings, according to the release. Volunteers have been working on restoring the B-29 for 16 years are now a “few final steps away” from flight, Murphy said. (Read more about Doc’s restoration in Wingman Magazine.)
The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to buy laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons. BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance kits annually for the U.S. military.