Need to fly an F-22? Theres an app for that. That is what the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command may be saying in the near future because they have plans for a large purchase by the branch’s Air Mobility Command (AMC). The division on Friday announced the award of a $9 million contract that could see it purchase as many as 18,000 32 gigabyte iPad 2s, at $520 apiece. Granted to computer services outfit Executive Technology, the contract is one of the military’s largest tablet purchases to date.

The contract is starting out small, with an initial order of 63 iPad 2s for testing. If they perform well, they will effectively replace the 40 pounds of manuals and navigation charts typically carried by pilots and navigators, the Air Mobility Command will order more. With the plan being to outfit even more flight crews with the device. Lets just hope they can resist playing Angry Birds during their combat sorties.

In recent days the Air Force has been making a big push to increase the technology of their branch of the service by reaching out to Silicone Valley. How better to make friends with Apple than making their pocketbooks bigger?