BONE Growth: Boeing announced Monday that it has received a $23 million follow-on contract from the Air Force to continue work to enhance the targeting system on the B-1B bomber. The company said software upgrades planned under this phase 2 work will complete Sniper targeting pod integration so that B-1 aircrews may use the Sniper in combination with the GBU-54, the 500-pound laser-guided joint direct attack munition, to attack moving ground targets. A B-1, using Sniper, attacked a stationary target with the GBU-38, the non-laser-guided 500-pound JDAM, for the first time in combat in August 2008 in Afghanistan. Boeing said the new upgrades will also enable the Sniper to send GPS target coordinates automatically to the JDAMs, thereby removing the need for the aircrew to enter the data manually. This software is expected to enter testing in February 2011.
How Miss America 2024 Took the Air Force Somewhere New
Dec. 20, 2024
When 2nd Lt. Madison Marsh became the first ever active service member crowned Miss America on Jan. 14, top Air Force officials recognized a rare opportunity to reach women and girls who otherwise might not consider military service as an option.