President Obama has tapped Gen. John Hyten to lead US Strategic Command, according to a Sept. 9 Pentagon announcement. If confirmed, Hyten will replace Adm. Cecil Haney, who has led the command since November 2014. Hyten currently serves as commander of Air Force Space Command, a position he has held since August 2014. Lt. Gen. John Raymond, who currently serves as the deputy chief of staff for operations on the Air Staff, was nominated last week to replace Hyten at AFSPC.
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.