Boeing 
and industry partner iRobot have received a contract to provide the Air Force with up to 70 small unmanned ground vehicles for explosive ordnance disposal. The companies will supply the model 310 SUGV under the agreement, which runs through September 2012, according to Boeing’s release. These combat-proven robots will give EOD airmen real-time awareness of dangerous situations from safe standoff distances. They are meant for missions like explosive disposal, route clearance, and reconnaissance. Bob DaLee, Boeing’s robotics program manager, said the companies are pleased to place this technology “into the hands of airmen around the world” to help them “in dealing with dangerous situations in war zones.” Boeing and iRobot have developed an SUGV family under a strategic alliance that began in 2007.
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.