Officials with the 36th Wing at Andersen AFB, Guam, have announced that 12 F-22s and a contingent of airmen from the 1st Fighter Wing at Langley AFB, Va., are now on the island for several months. The Raptors are there as part of a normal rotation of US combat forces into the Pacific region to maintain stability. “By having the F-22s here on the island, I think the message we send is clear—we are prepared to deliver air dominance on demand,” said Lt. Col. Pete Fesler, commander of this expeditionary fighter unit. The F-22s join an expeditionary squadron of B-52s from Minot AFB, N.D., that began arriving June 3. The Air Force also currently has 12 Raptors from Holloman AFB, N.M., deployed to Kadena AB, Japan. (Andersen report by SrA. Shane Dunaway)
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.