The Air Force plans to enlist the help of prior military training instructors to bridge the gap until it can fill the 220 additional MTI slots it must have to train prospective airmen over the next two years as the service increases its active duty end strength to 332,700. CMSAF Rodney McKinley highlighted the need for the additional MTIs in an Enlisted Perspective letter earlier this year, but now he says the current MTIs, who are “doing an outstanding job and are working long hours to meet this influx,” need some immediate relief. In the short term, Air Force Personnel Center will select former MTIs—those who served in that capacity within the past four years—to return to that duty for a 179-day temporary duty assignment. (AFPC report)
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.