When the F-15 entered service in the 1970s, fatigue tests were done to see how long they could last. Another such test will soon be done, ACC commander Gen. John Corley said Friday. Corley noted that F-15s built in the Cold War were expected to serve perhaps 15 years, or about 4,000 hours, but have been extended by necessity to 8,000 hours. He said Air Force Materiel Command will do a new test to see if long-term extension of the F-15 is realistic.
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.