The nation must achieve its national objectives in the current conflicts, while continuing to develop Joint Force 2020, said Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, the new Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman, in his message to the joint force. It’s important to “provide the greatest possible number of options for our nation’s leaders and to ensure our nation remains immune from coercion,” he wrote in his message, dated Oct. 1. Dempsey urged the Defense Department to renew its commitment to the profession of arms by learning, understanding, and promoting “the knowledge, skills, attributes, and behaviors that define us as a profession.” And, he said it’s vital that DOD leaders “keep faith with our military family,” so all troops can see “the future they have sacrificed to secure.” He also thanked military members and their families for their service. “You make us the finest military on the planet,” he stated. “You are our decisive advantage.”
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.