While “deficiencies” identified during testing that must be fixed remain, the Air Force has accepted the first aerial refueling tanker from Boeing more than two years after originally scheduled.
The KC-46A Pegasus tanker — the first of 179 KC-46 aerial tankers planned as part of a $44 billion program — has been accepted, but fixing the flawed camera system used in refueling operations could take years to address. The Air Force can also withhold up to $28 million for each of the 52 tankers Boeing is on contract for to help guarantee the fixes are made.
“We have identified, and Boeing has agreed to fix at its expense, deficiencies discovered in developmental testing of the remote vision system,” Air Force spokesperson Capt. Hope Cronin said in a statement. “The Air Force has mechanisms in place to ensure Boeing meets its contractual obligations while we continue with initial operational testing and evaluation.”
A formal delivery ceremony for the first four tankers is expected this month at McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas, and another four are set to be delivered to Altus Air Force Base in Oklahoma. The tanker program will be undergoing operation combat testing for the next several months.
Boeing has maintained that the tankers are “safe” and noted that six KC-46 executed more than 3,800 flight hours during flight testing.
“The KC-46A is a proven, safe, multi-mission aircraft that will transform aerial refueling and mobility operations for decades to come,” Leanne Caret, president and CEO of Boeing Defense, Space & Security, said in a statement. “We look forward to working with the Air Force, and the Navy, during their initial operational test and evaluation of the KC-46, as we further demonstrate the operational capabilities of this next-generation aircraft across refueling, mobility and combat weapons systems missions.”
Former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis was planning to approve tankers in December, but he resigned before he did so. As a result, undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment Ellen Lord and the Air Force agreed to accept the aircraft. Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan previously was an executive at Boeing and has recused himself from issues concerning Boeing.
