The Air Force aims to release a request for proposals for the KC-135 Recapitalization Program—formerly called the “bridge tanker”—in fiscal 2025 but has yet to set an acquisition strategy for the aircraft, waiting for more industry input, a service spokesperson said. The service isn’t saying ...
Lockheed Martin has withdrawn its LMXT aerial refueler from the Air Force’s KC-135 fleet recapitalization program—previously referred to as the “bridge tanker” effort—the company said Oct. 23. However, its partner Airbus said it will press on, offering its Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) version of the ...
Lawmakers on the House Armed Services seapower and projection forces subcommittee are seeming skeptical of some the Air Force’s future tanker plans and want to put guardrails in place, as they unveiled their markup of the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act on June 12. The markup ...
The Air Force has officially launched its Next-Generation Air-Refueling System, a stealthy tanker to begin operations circa 2040. A Request for Information put out to industry said USAF will consider all manner of novel and innovative ideas for the next tanker, but the technologies it ...
The Air Force’s nascent KC-Z program, aimed at developing a next-generation family of systems for aerial refueling, will look to launch its analysis-of-alternatives study in 2024, years earlier than originally planned. Originally, the analysis of alternatives for the KC-Z was set for “maybe in the ...
The defense contractors vying for the Air Force’s “bridge tanker” program updated the status of their aerial refuelers, citing new capabilities aimed at automating the refueling process. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall has repeatedly said the likelihood of a competition for the service’s “bridge tanker” ...
Several lawmakers on the House Armed Services Committee were disappointed in their effort to force the Air Force into a competition for its KC-Y "bridge tanker." Their proposed amendment failed to make it into the committee’s markup of the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act. The panel ...
Air Force Magazine Editor in Chief Tobias Naegele and Pentagon Editor Abraham Mahshie sat down with Lt. Gen. David S. Nahom, Air Force deputy chief of staff for plans and programs, for an exclusive interview that touched on everything from the the Next Generation Air ...
Air Mobility Command’s KC-46 next-generation refueler has been operating from five bases nationwide and for nearly two years, but lessons learned and problems encountered were not unified until a Nov. 17-18 Weapons Systems Council at McConnell Air Force Base, Kan. “The KC-46, being a new ...
Officially launching its bid to supply the Air Force’s KC-Y “bridge” tanker, Lockheed Martin said its solution would offer the service longer range and persistence than current tankers by virtue of the aircraft’s larger size. To sweeten the deal, if Lockheed Martin wins the KC-Y ...
After six straight quarterly losses, Boeing reported profits of $755 million in the second quarter of 2021, a year after posting a $3.32 billion loss. Company officials reported no new loss on the KC-46 tanker, on which the company has lost $5 billion so far. ...
The Air National Guard will get the next two tranches of KC-46 Pegasus tankers, at locations to be decided within the next 12 months, Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs Lt. Gen. David S. Nahom told the Senate Appropriations Committee on July 21. ...