USAF officials confirmed to lawmakers Wednesday that USAF wants to retire 22 C-5As—17 in Fiscal 2011 and the other five in 2012, if Congress lifts the ban on reducing the C-5 inventory. To meet its new 32.7 million ton miles metric, USAF only needs a max of 304 airframes, but Congress has dictated a floor of 316. In a combined statement, David Van Buren, Lt. Gen. Phillip Breedlove, and Brig. Gen. Richard Johnston, said that USAF expects to provide lawmakers required reports on strategic airlift plans in early summer. The service also owes Congress a report on the C-5 reliability enhancement and re-engining program (RERP) operational test and evaluation that concluded in January and plans to deliver that one in mid to late summer, but service already has reduced its buy of kits for the avionics modernization program, which must precede RERP.
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.