Michigan 
Air National Guard A-10 and KC-135 aircraft from the 127th Wing at Selfridge ANG Base, north of Detroit, recently flew to Estonia, joining four partner air forces in building interoperability with the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania during exercise Saber Strike 2012. “The cooperation that we have enjoyed with the Estonian air force has been outstanding,” said CMSgt. Dennis Barriger, one of the Michigan Air Guardsmen deployed to Estonia, in the wing’s June 11 release. The Michigan airplanes arrived at Amari Air Base on June 8. Most of the nearly 150 participating Air Guardsmen are from Selfridge, but some are from other Michigan units, according to the release. The US airmen integrated with military personnel from the three Baltic States, as well as Britain, Canada, Finland, and France. Overall, there are nearly 2,000 participants in the exercise. The Air Guardsmen are operating primarily from Amari, but some are supporting the exercise from neighboring Latvia, states the release. (Amari report by TSgt. Danile Heaton)
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.