Rockwell Collins delivered the 419th and final C/KC-135 upgraded with the Global Air Traffic Management system during a roll-out ceremony at Kelly Field near San Antonio, announced the company. “This program set a new performance standard for Air Force procurements with 100 percent of the upgraded aircraft delivered on time and within budget,” said Dave Nieuwsma, Rockwell’s mobility vice president. GATM enables Air Force KC-135 tankers to transition safely and efficiently between military and commercial airspace, providing “unhindered access to global air routes” and simultaneously cutting fuel burn. Rockwell won the contract in 1999, and GATM-equipped KC-135s were the first Air Force fleet certified to international communication, navigation, surveillance/air traffic management standards. The company is also the prime contractor for the KC-135 Block 45 cockpit upgrades, slated to begin delivery in 2013, and is a major avionics supplier to Boeing for the Air Force’s KC-46A tanker.
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.