US Air Force airmen of the 549th Combat Training Squadron at Nellis AFB, Nev., worked with British crews of the RAF’s newest fighter, the Typhoon, to develop the British pilots’ close air support capability during the most recent Green Flag exercise at Nellis. The event marked the last hurdle for the Typhoon before the RAF declared them fully combat capable, slated for July 1. Seven Typhoons from XI Squadron at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire came to Nellis to test their ability to conduct CAS sorties. “We knew it [the Typhoon] was a world-beater in the air-to-air environment, but we weren’t sure about the air-to-surface capability,” said Group Capt. Stuart Atha, Coningsby station commander. In Atha’s view, “We have done it; we have achieved it.” (Nellis report by 2nd Lt. Jennifer Richard)
The Air Force on March 12 awarded contract modifications worth a combined $2.4 billion to Boeing to procure an undisclosed number of E-7 Wedgetail as part of the program's engineering and manufacturing development phase and continue work on the airborne battle management aircraft’s radar.