Boeing has announced that the Royal Air Force will acquire a seventh C-17 transport aircraft under an agreement with the British Ministry of Defence. Boeing is scheduled to deliver this aircraft in December 2010. “The RAF has an urgent need for additional airlift capability,” said Robin Philip, head of MoD’s commercial air support. He added, “We know firsthand the capabilities and reliability the C-17 brings to every mission, and that’s why we’re adding another one to our fleet.” The RAF’s current fleet of six C-17s has logged more than 50,000 flight hours to date in missions that include supporting operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and ferrying humanitarian relief supplies to Southeast Asia after tsunamis and Pakistan after earthquakes. The new C-17, like the RAF’s others, will operate out of RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, England.
Lt. Gen. Dan Caine, nominee to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Defense Department needs to upgrade its electronic warfare capability and its EW training ranges; just as his predecessor said at his own confirmation hearing.