The continuing resolution—and corresponding lack of an enacted defense appropriations bill for Fiscal 2011—is the No. 1 issue on airmen’s minds today, CMSAF James Roy told House lawmakers Wednesday. “Our men and women are deployed to foxholes around the world, yet we are dangling this [CR] in front of them, saying we may or may not be able to pay you,” Roy told the House Appropriations Committee’s military construction and veterans affairs panel. From a policy perspective, the top three quality-of-life issues that have captured senior leaders’ attention are building a culture of resiliency among airmen and their families, continuous support for those that deploy, and upgrading the Air Force’s exceptional family member program, Roy said. “The quality of life of airmen and their families is an overwhelming factor in how long they will serve,” he said.
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.