In Operation Restore Hope II, C-5 and C-141 aircraft transport 1,300 troops, 18 M-1 Abrams tanks, and 44 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles from the US to Somalia in nine days. Some flights went nonstop in 18 hours with four aerial refuelings.
As near-peer adversaries have increased their reach and lethality, the U.S. Air Force is accelerating the tanker fleet recapitalization and aggressively pulling forward the Next Generation Aerial Refueling System (NGAS) to meet the threat. Globally operating the KC-46A has advanced mission...