General 
Atomics Aeronautical Systems, or GA-ASI, will display a full-scale mockup of its new Predator XP remotely piloted aircraft at the IDEX defense symposium in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, later this month, announced the company. “With significant interest from the UAE and other countries in Predator XP’s long-endurance and wide-area surveillance capabilities, IDEX presents the ideal venue for the debut of our Predator XP full-scale model,” said Frank Pace, president of the company’s Aircraft Systems Group, in a Feb. 11 release. Predator XP is an export version of the combat-proven RQ-1 Predator, offering improved intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capability and enhancements like an automatic takeoff and landing system and more efficient propulsion, according to the company. GA-ASI has partnered with International Golden Group, a leading defense supplier in the Middle East, to offer Predator XP to the UAE Government. IDEX runs from Feb. 17 to Feb. 21.
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.