KC-135 tankers of the 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron at Manas AB, Kyrgyzstan, set a single-day, fuel-offload record for the base on May 24 by passing 804,800 pounds of fuel to 32 receivers during 12 missions. The figure bested the previous offload mark of 722,000 pounds that was set Aug. 13, 2007. “This impressive offload accounted for 55 percent of all the air refueling support in Afghanistan that day,” said Lt. Col. Wayne Cooper, the unit’s commander. (Manas report by Lt. Col. Adriane Craig)
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.