Engineers from the Aerospace Sustainment Directorate at Robins AFB, Ga., poured over the three C-130s at Little Rock AFB, Ark., that were damaged last month when a tornado ripped through the Arkansas air base. The four members of the directorate’s tactical airlift division spent several days assessing the feasibility of repairing these airlifters. Caught on the flightline, these aircraft sustained substantial wing damage and some secondary battle scars when the tornado tore through the base on April 25 with winds estimated up to 135 miles per hour. The Robins team completed its assessment on May 3. It pegged the cost of fixing each C-130 at roughly $2 million. Air Mobility Command officials will make the final call whether to repair or scrap these airframes. Two of the aircraft, both 1962 models, are already slated for retirement later this year. (Robins report by Wayne Crenshaw)
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.