The Senate on Tuesday confirmed the nomination of Gen. William Fraser to become the next commander of US Transportation Command at Scott AFB, Ill., according to a statement from Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. Fraser has led Air Combat Command at JB Langley-Eustis, Va., since September 2009. He will replace Gen. Duncan McNabb, who is retiring, effective November 30, according to his updated official biography. McNabb has been in charge of TRANSCOM since September 2008. Fraser went before Senate Armed Services Committee for his confirmation hearing on July 21. Panetta’s statement congratulates Fraser and several additional senior officers on their confirmations for new posts: Army Gen. Raymond Odierno to be Army Chief of Staff, Adm. Jonathan Greenert to be Chief of Naval Operations, and Lt. Gen. Charles Jacoby, who received a fourth star to head US Northern Command.
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.