The runway at Misawa AB, Japan, reopened on Aug. 5 after nearly three weeks of construction. The $2.1 million repair project extended the life of the heavily used runway, ensuring safe conditions for the 35th Fighter Wing, Naval Air Facility Misawa, Combined Task Force-72, Japan Air Self Defense Force, and Misawa City Airport, according to an Aug. 15 release. “The more sorties we generate to support the pivot to the Pacific, the faster our runway will degrade,” said Kirk Schaumann, 35th Civil Engineer Squadron chief of construction management. The second phase of the runway repair is scheduled for next summer, but once complete the next major airfield repair is not estimated to take place until 2026, according to the release.
The Air Force Research Laboratory awarded Kratos Unmanned Aerial Systems Inc. and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems matching $17.7 million contracts for an "Off-Board Sensing Station,” which is an unmanned aircraft that would extend a manned fighter’s sensing range and also potentially carry additional weapons for that aircraft. The cost-plus-fixed-fee contracts…