A little over two years ago, Simple Flying took a look at Airbus' modified
A330-200 variant in an article. Designed to serve as a military support aircraft,
the jet is otherwise known as the A330 MRTT. Today, we'll examine Boeing's
answer to this product: The modified 767-200 designated as the KC-46 Pegasus.
Like the A330 MRTT, the KC-46 Pegasus was also designed to be a multi-role tanker and
transport aircraft. As is fairly obvious in the description, the aircraft is capable of
transporting passengers and freight, but is also capable of refueling other aircraft in mid-air.
Built to meet the requirements of the US Air Force and its allies,
this tanker-transport has a number of stand-out features that set it
apart from the commercial passenger version of the Boeing 767-200ER:
According to Air & Space Magazine, the jet incorporates the 787’s state-of-the-art cockpit.
Nuclear, chemical and biological hardening and
flight deck armor are included to provide added protection.
A "Military Data Network", which allows the KC-46 to act as a secure interface
between the on-ground Air Operations Center and airborne aircraft operating in its vicinity,
The capability of multi-point simultaneous aerial refueling.
A medevac configuration allows for 54 patients with patient support pallets.
Seat tracks and an onboard cargo handling system allow the simultaneous carrying
of palletized cargo and passenger seats in a variety of combinations.
In terms of passengers, the jet is FAA-certified for 58, or 114 for contingency operations.
Boeing notes that the KC-46A can quote "convert between cargo,
passenger and aeromedical evacuation modes in just two hours — with emergency
oxygen and electrical power for medevac support included..."
According to data from Boeing, 69 airframes have been delivered as
of January 2023. The largest customer, the United States,
has 67, while Japan operates two. The Israeli military has ordered four,
but these have yet to be delivered, while Japan has ordered an additional two for its forces.
According to various media sources, KC-46 has had its fair share of issues. Air Force Times
notes that the program has had to work through quote "buggy navigation software, water-draining
tubes that freeze and crack, malfunctioning cargo restraints and faulty emergency exit door trim."
One of the more notable issues arose in 2018,
when the US Air Force reported that the jet had a major problem with a quote “critical
system that provides imagery to boom operators during the refueling process."
Boeing said that a quick software fix was all that was required, but Air Force
officials strongly (and publicly) disagreed, stating that a more extensive fix was needed.
The Air Force was proven correct as the issue was more severe and complicated than Boeing's
initial estimate, and It was only in December 2022 that the KC-46′s redesigned vision system,
the "RVS 2.0" was announced. Despite this breakthrough, supply chain issues mean
that this new system won't be seeing service until at least October 2025.
In September 2022, the US Air Force officially approved the KC-46A Pegasus
for worldwide deployments to quote "meet combatant command taskings". The declaration
came after the KC-46 successfully refueled two F-15E Strike Eagles in the skies above Qatar.
What are your thoughts on the KC-46? Let us know by leaving a comment.