Air Mobility Command will cease operations Friday to refocus airmen on safety command-wide. Aircraft taxiing accidents since October alone—the start of Fiscal 2012—have already exceeded the number of similar mishaps reported during the entire previous fiscal year, explained AMC Commander Gen. Raymond Johns. “We must sharpen our focus on safety in order to continue to successfully execute our global mobility mission,” wrote 18th Air Force Commander Lt. Gen. Mark Ramsay in a message to leaders. He added, “Recent on-duty mishaps have highlighted the importance of emphasizing to our airmen the most basic safety principles of good risk management, attention to detail, and compliance with standard operating procedures.” Vehicular incidents topped the concern list, though maintenance, cargo handling, and flight-line safety will be key training themes during Friday’s safety down day. “The bottom line is these mishaps are preventable,” said Lt. Col. Jackie Breeden, 60th Air Mobility Wing safety officer at Travis AFB, Calif. (Travis report by Nick DeCicco)
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.