Providing housing to single airmen remains a top priority under the Air Force’s military construction budget, Terry Yonkers, USAF’s assistant secretary for installations, environment, and logistics, told members of the Senate last week. Testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee’s military construction panel, Yonkers said the service’s Fiscal 2012 budget request includes a total of $190 million for seven new construction dormitory projects. If approved, that will keep the Air Force on track to meet its goal of providing adequate dormitories to all unaccompanied airmen by 2017, Yonkers said. The Air Force also is “well on its way to privatize” 52,500 houses on all bases in the continental United States by Fiscal 2012, he said. There are six more privatized housing projects still to complete. USAF’s request also includes nearly $500 million to sustain and modernize overseas housing, said Yonkers. (Yonkers prepared remarks)
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.