Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), speaking at a Montgomery Chamber of Commerce event on Feb. 16, said he does not believe Congress will go for another round of base closures since it is “still digesting the last BRAC,” reports the Maxwell-Gunter Dispatch. Others have taken an opposite view, at least they did almost two years ago before the economy took a nosedive. Some see a new BRAC as inevitable as the Pentagon strains under its budget and the services, certainly the Air Force, believe they still have excess infrastructure. In Shelby’s view, though, the focus should be on “challenges down the road” for our “over-stretched” military.
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.