Darwin McDaniel
Boeing has delivered the first KC-46A Pegasus tanker to the U.S. Air Force after completing extensive flight tests and a DD250 material inspection and receiving report necessary to proceed with aircraft delivery activities.
The military service contracted Boeing to manufacture an initial 52 KC-46As and will house the first four units at McConnell AF Base in Wichita, Kan, the company said Thursday.
Leanne Caret, president and CEO of Boeing’s defense, space and security business, said the company will assist the Air Force and the U.S. Navy in operational test and evaluation efforts to further demonstrate the platform’s performance in refueling, combat and mobility missions.
During tests, the aircraft logged more than 3,800 flight hours and transferred more than 4M pounds of fuel to other planes that include A-10, B-52, C-17, KC-10, KC-135, KC-46, F-15E, F-16 and F/A-18.
Boeing noted the Altus AF Base in Oklahoma will house four subsequent KC-46As that are scheduled for delivery as early as next month.
The service branch plans to buy as many as 179 tankers from the company.
