The Northrop Grumman-EADS North America team may change its plan to offer the Air Force a modified Airbus A330-200 for the KC-X tanker should it win the competition. Instead, Flight International reports that the team might substitute the freighter version, the A330-200F now that it has a “solid customer base” and is more fully developed, meaning the price would come down. The team’s proposal called for adding a cargo door and localized strengthening to the basic passenger A330-200, but the F model might interest USAF more since it starts out as a freighter.
While the Space Force is still making long-term plans to establish high-fidelity live and virtual test and training ranges in the coming years, officials say they're also working with operators to identify near-term gaps and quickly field capabilities to address them.
