Daily Report

The Air Force on Wednesday issued the request for proposals for 179 KC-X aerial refueling aircraft to replace its oldest KC-135 tankers. Prospective bidders Boeing and Northrop Grumman now have 75 days to turn in their proposals, followed by 120 days of evaluation, leading to the planned announcement of a winner around mid-September, Deputy Defense Secretary Bill Lynn told reporters during a Pentagon briefing. Lynn said the solicitation, in its final form, is fair, clearly articulated, and lays out a transparent process. The Air Force dropped one requirement for a microwave landing system and, overall, the final version of the solicitation has some 230 slight changes, based on more than 350 comments from Congress and industry. But otherwise, the RFP does not deviate at all from its focus on meeting the needs of Air Mobility Command, while getting the best deal for the taxpayer, said Lynn. (KC-X RFP) (Briefing transcript; briefing slides; slides, expanded version)

Northrop Grumman on Wednesday acknowledged receipt of the Air Force’s KC-X tanker solicitation notice, but shed no light on whether it will remain in the high-stakes tanker competition against Boeing. Northrop spokesman Randy Belote deferred further public comment until the...

: With the changes that the Air Force has instituted in the past few years, its means of assessing contract bids and then choosing winning proposals is sound, Lt. Gen. Mark Shackelford, military assistant to USAF’s acquisition executive said Tuesday....

The Air Force has approved the plan to give incentive pay to officers who commit to flying remotely piloted aircraft and enlisted airmen who pledge to operate RPA sensors, service officials announced Wednesday. The incentive pay is equivalent to current...

That’s how Lt. Gen. Mark Shackelford, USAF’s top uniformed acquisition official, describes the Air Force’s new MC-12W surveillance aircraft. Speaking Tuesday at an Air Force Association-sponsored Air Force Breakfast Series presentation in Arlington, Va., Shackelford said the MC-12 features overhead...

Maj. Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski on Feb. 12 became the new commander of the Air Force Research Lab during a change-of-command ceremony at the National Museum of the United States Air Force on the grounds of Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. She replaced...

Defense Secretary Robert Gates has appointed Letitia Long to serve as the next director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, replacing Navy Vice Adm. Robert Murrett who has been at the agency’s helm since July 2006. Gates made the announcement on...

Air Force and industry engineers are testing an enhanced version of the Rolls Royce AE3007 turbofan engine that powers RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicles at the Arnold Engineering Development Center on the grounds of Arnold AFB, Tenn. These activities are taking place in the center's T-4 test cell. Gary Meuer, the contractor managing the testing, said this is the first altitude test of this engine variant, which features upgraded turbine hardware and an improved combustor. "They [the customer and sponsor] are after fuel economy, not more performance, but more efficiency and endurance,” said Meuer. Andrew Jackson, the lead contractor engineer for the testing, said T-4 simulates the altitude and Mach number of the Global Hawk in flight. RQ-4s have an operational ceiling around 65,000 ft. (AEDC release)

The U-2 force at Beale AFB, Calif., gave former World War II pilot and long-time US military advocate Oliver “Ollie” Crawford the rare opportunity to ride in a two-seat U-2 reconnaissance aircraft. Crawford, who is in his 80s and piloted...

Air Sorties in Southwest Asia, Feb. 20, 2010 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total YTD ISR 27 37 64 2,910 CAS/Armed Recon 16 73 89 4,479 Airlift 175 175 8,130 Air refueling 33 33 2,102 Total 361 17,621 OIF=Operation Iraqi...