Airmen 
continue myriad activities under Operation Tomodachi to bring aid to the people of Japan. On Sunday, a C-17 from JB Elmendorf, Alaska, landed at Sendai airport in northeastern Japan, bringing in relief supplies. It was the first C-17 to land at the airport since a powerful earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan’s northeast coast on March 11. A second supply-laden C-17 followed shortly thereafter. Special tactics airmen from Kadena Air Base last week helped reopen Sendai to fixed-wing aircraft. Also on Sunday, HH-60s from Yokota Air Base delivered food, water, and medical supplies to displaced civilians in hard-hit Kessenuma City. On Saturday, Yokota C-130 aircrews ferried seven pallets of boron that Japanese engineers will use to help stabilize the damaged Fukushima nuclear plant. A Global Hawk remotely piloted vehicle from Andersen AFB, Guam, was expected to overfly the plant to gather imagery for damage assessment. (Scott report by MSgt. Scott T. Sturkol) (Sendai photo caption by SSgt. Samuel Morse) (Yokota photo caption by Osakabe Yasuo) (Yokota photo caption by SSgt. Jonathan Steffen) (Yokota report by 2nd Lt. Christopher Love) (Yokota report by SrA. Michael J. Veloz) (See also our earlier coverage, Discovery News report, and Willard transcript)
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.