Leadership for Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan has changed from the US military to NATO’s International Security Assistance Force. Air Force SSgt. Julie Weckerlein reports that this marks the first time a NATO multinational team has taken control of a large airfield and operational staging base in an active theater. RAF Air Commodore Ashley Stevenson, who took command from US Army Col. Richard Stevens, now oversees the shared efforts by US, Canada, Netherlands, and United Kingdom forces to maintain the facility and support its 10,000-strong military and civilian force. USAF airmen deployed to Kandahar work primarily in US Army positions.
The Air Force and Boeing agreed to a nearly $2.4 billion contract for a new lot of KC-46 aerial tankers on Nov. 21. The deal, announced by the Pentagon, is for 15 new aircraft in Lot 11 at a cost of $2.389 billion—some $159 million per tail.