The F-35 strike fighter’s first Full Mission Simulator has arrived at Eglin AFB. Fla., announced prime contractor Lockheed Martin. Preparation and assembly activities are now underway at Eglin’s F-35 Integrated Training Center so that simulator use may commence this fall. “This is a tremendous milestone for the F-35 training team,” said Joanne Puglisi, Lockheed’s director of F-35 Training and Support, of the delivery. The F-35 FMS includes a high-fidelity, 360-degree visual display system and a reconfigurable cockpit that can simulate the Air Force’s F-35A, Marine Corps’ F-35B, and Navy’s F-35C variants. It is the highest fidelity system in the suite of F-35 pilot-training devices. “The F-35 FMS will be our primary pilot training device, and we are anxious to start putting it to good use,” said Col. Arthur Tomassetti, vice commander of Eglin’s 33rd Fighter Wing, which hosts the initial F-35 schoolhouse.
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.