The 480th Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Wing at Langley AFB, Va., in early June inactivated three of its detachments and, in their place, activated three intelligence support squadrons. The new units are the 792nd ISS at Hickam AFB, Hawaii, 693rd ISS at Ramstein AB, Germany, and the 694th ISS at Osan AB, South Korea. They provide communication, computer, maintenance, and logistics support to the Air Force’s distributed common ground system, a network of worldwide hubs that processes, analyzes, and disseminates imagery and signals intelligence products to warfighters. The squadrons’ activation standardizes DCGS operations under the wing, Langley officials said. This move is part of the broader, continuing transformation of the Air Force’s intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance enterprise. (Langley report by Marge McGlinn) (For more on DCGS and the ISR transformation, see ISR Revolution from the June issue of Air Force Magazine.)
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.