A member of the famed World War II Flying Tigers, John Richard Rossi died April 17 of complications from pneumonia at age 92, according to an April 28 report in the Los Angeles Times. Rossi joined the Navy in 1939, earning wings in 1940 and serving as a flight instructor. He resigned his commission and signed up for the American Volunteer Group in China, reportedly downing six Japanese aircraft.
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.