Secretary Michael Donley recognized Air Force Academy Cadet 1st Class Dustin Hayhurst as the 2011 Air Force Cadet of the Year during a ceremony at the Pentagon. “In Dustin, we recognize a cadet who truly exemplifies one of the Air Force’s core values: excellence in all we do,” said Donley at the May 10 event. “He has consistently excelled as a scholar, as a warrior, and as an athlete as well.” Hayhurst, a systems engineering team member of the academy’s FalconSAT satellite program, ranks first of 1,110 cadets in overall academics, said service officials in a May 11 release. He also is a member of the academy’s triathlon team. “I can’t tell you how grateful I am to receive this award, and not just the award, but the opportunities I have been given at the Air Force Academy,” said Hayhurst. The Air Squadron, a British organization, established the Cadet of the Year award in 2000 to thank the United States for its support of Britain. (Washington, D.C., report by TSgt. Richard A. Williams Jr.)
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.