Inside the Air Force highlights

Some must-reads from this week's issue of Inside the Air Force:

1. The Air Force's recent announcement that its KC-46 delivery schedule was aligned with prime contractor Boeing's came after the two parties agreed on a slate of schedule mitigation efforts, Inside Defense has learned.

Full story: Newly aligned KC-46 schedule includes slate of risk-mitigation efforts

2. U.S. Special Operations Command is refining development plans for its AC-130J Ghostrider laser demonstration and expects to award two subsystem manufacturing contracts by the end of September, a command official told Inside Defense.

Full story: Full story: SOCOM to award two AC-130J laser subsystem contracts by end of FY-18

3. The Defense Department's recent $660 million award to Lockheed Martin to support an F-35 economic order quantity buy will yield less than half of what the program expected in cost savings, according to a letter obtained this week by Inside Defense.

Full story: Projected F-35 EOQ cost savings cut in half in CAPE estimate

4. The Air Force's light-attack experiment is suspended until further notice as service officials determine whether they gleaned enough data from flight tests to end the effort early, following a fatal A-29 crash last week at White Sands Missile Range, NM.

Full story: Air Force suspends light-attack experiment