An Air Force crew last week picked up a factory-fresh MC-130J special-mission aircraft from Lockheed Martin’s manufacturing plant in Marietta, Ga., announced the company. Air Force Special Operations Command is assigning this MC-130J, which left Marietta on Sept. 25, to the 352nd Special Operations Group at RAF Mildenhall, Britain, according to the company’s release. The group is scheduled to receive a fleet of 12 MC-130Js over the next five years. AFSOC is acquiring the MC-130Js to replace its legacy MC130Hs and MC-130Ps. Overall, the Air Force’s current plans call for procuring 85 MC-130Js, 16 of which Lockheed Martin will modify post-production to the AC-130J gunship standard.
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.