The Air Force on July 31 activated the 502nd Air Base Wing that will serve as the installation manager for Joint Base San Antonio that is being established per a BRAC 2005 decision. The joint base will fully integrate the support functions of the Army’s Ft. Sam Houston with those of Lackland Air Force Base and Randolph Air Force Base by 2011. “Today’s activation of the 502nd Air Base Wing signifies the committed start of Joint Base San Antonio and the beginning of a consolidation required by law,” said Gen. Stephen Lorenz , commander of Air Education and Training Command, who led the activation ceremony, which took place at Randolph. The wing, which is assigned under AETC, will be headquartered at Ft. Sam Houston. It will have 8,000 employees who support 80,000 permanent employees and about 150,000 students at the joint installation. “What I pledge to the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines is to bring the best of all processes, resourced properly,” said Brig. Gen. Len Patrick, commander of the new wing. (Randolph report by Ashley M. Wright)
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.