Air Combat Command’s enlisted corps inducted Gen. William Fraser into the Order of the Sword, recognizing his outstanding leadership and support of enlisted members during the two years that he led the command at JB Langley-Eustis, Va. “Tonight, I really am standing up here because I am standing on your shoulders,” Fraser told the gathering of some 500 ACC airmen during the Sept. 12 induction ceremony in Hampton, Va. He added, “I thank you again for your dedicated and selfless service, your trust and your faith in me as your commander.” The Order of the Sword is the highest honor that the enlisted corps can bestow on an individual. Fraser relinquished command of ACC to Gen. Mike Hostage on Sept. 13. Fraser is heading to Scott AFB, Ill., to take charge of US Transportation Command. (Langley-Eustis report by MSgt. Steven Goetsch)
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.