Kadena 
AB, Japan, escaped Typhoon Bolaven’s wrath with just minor damage, including some power outages and minor flooding, base spokesman Maj. Chris Anderson told the Daily Report. “Kadena weathered the storm fairly well,” said Anderson in an e-mail correspondence. He added, “However, our civil engineer recovery teams were out in full force cleaning up debris, and working to restore power to those affected.” The typhoon slammed Okinawa on Aug. 26. In preparation for the storm’s arrival, the 18th Wing had relocated some of Kadena’s aircraft to other Pacific bases, while airmen secured others in typhoon-proof hangars on base. Anderson declined to detail the specific numbers or locations of aircraft movements. Thus, it’s not clear if the recently deployed F-22 Raptors were among the aircraft to relocate. Kadena’s schools reopened already on Aug. 28. Forecasters had predicted that Bolaven would be the strongest storm to hit the area in half a century, but the slow-moving typhoon didn’t live up to expectations, reported the BBC. After passing Okinawa, the typhoon worked its way up the Yellow Sea, striking the Korean peninsula from the west on Aug. 28.
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.