The hopes of officials in Dayton, Ohio, are still alive that the National Museum of the US Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base might land one of NASA’s space shuttles as a permanent display after the fleet stops flying. That’s because the House Science and Technology Committee voted July 22 to remove language from its version of a NASA funding bill that some observers claim would have given institutions in Florida and Texas the upper hand in securing the shuttles, according to a Cleveland Plain Dealer blog post. Overall, 21 institutions are in the mix across the country. NASA has already promised the shuttle Discovery to the Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden is expected to make the final decision in the next few months. (Museum Web site)
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.