The Senate has approved the nomination of Gen. Robert Kehler for his new assignment as commander of US Strategic Command at Offutt AFB, Neb. Kehler has led Air Force Space Command at Peterson AFB, Colo., since October 2007. He was STRATCOM’s deputy commander from May 2005 to October 2007. President Obama nominated Kehler to lead STRATCOM in September. Kehler went before the Senate Armed Services Committee last month for his nomination hearing. He will replace Gen. Kevin Chilton, who has commanded STRATCOM for more than three years. Chilton is retiring, effective Feb. 1, 2011.
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.