Combat airmen in Afghanistan will soon have a bird’s eye view of the battlefield through their own pair of eyeglasses. Vuzix of Rochester, N.Y., announced that delivery of the first shipment of Tac-Eye LT head-mounted displays will take place over the next 90 days. The tiny viewing screen “mounts to any standard issue ballistic eyewear or helmet and connects to any laptop or computer,” displaying live airborne feeds from remotely piloted aircraft, imagery from explosive ordnance disposal robots, or any available camera feed, according to the company. “The combat reviews and comments from the battlefield airmen community allowed us to customize our product to their specific needs . . . to increase the airmen’s situational awareness, decrease their carried combat load, and increase their safety,” stated Vuzix President and CEO Paul Travers. The Defense Department sponsored Tac-Eye LT’s development over the past five years.
The KC-46A can now pass fuel to almost 70 percent of aircraft that request aerial refueling, Air Mobility Command announced. The newest aircraft on the list include C-130 Special Operations variants, the C-5M Super Galaxy and the E-3G Sentry AWACS.