President Obama has nominated Maj. Gen. Robert Otto for promotion to the rank of lieutenant general for his new assignment as deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance in Air Force headquarters, announced the Pentagon on April 11. Otto has been commander of the Air Force ISR Agency at JBSA-Lackland, Tex., since July 2011. If the Senate confirms his nomination, Otto would replace Lt. Gen. Larry James, who has been the Air Force’s top ISR official since January 2011.James, a 1978 Air Force Academy graduate, is retiring.
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.