Lockheed Martin
Warzone/The Drive: Air Force Says It Needs More Survivable Tankers By 2040
The need for less vulnerable tankers to support future conflicts against near-peer opponents like China is growing.
The U.S. Air Force says it would like to have a fleet of next-generation aerial refueling tankers in service by 2040. At least for the time being, the service says that it is willing to consider a wide range of options for what the tankers might actually look like, but says they will need to be able to provide support in "contested scenarios."
Lockheed Martin and Boeing have already been exploring relevant design concepts with blended wing-body planforms and that are at least somewhat stealthy. The anticipated schedule and other details about what the Air Force is officially calling the Next Generation Air-refueling System (NGAS) were included in a Request For Information (RFI) contracting notice posted online yesterday. The announcement indicates that the service is still refining its specific requirements for NGAS and is hoping to begin a more formal process of exploring its options, called an Analysis of Alternatives (AoA), this year.
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Update #1: Air Force Launches New Stealthy Tanker Program, with Delivery Projected for 2040 (Air Space Forces)
Update #2: AFLCMC Requests Info on Next-Generation Tanker Production Program (Executive Gov)
WNU Editor: Problems continue with the Air Force's new KC-46 tankers .... New KC-46 Deficiency Revealed as Contract Is Signed for 15 More Tankers (Air & Space Forces).
the small refueler drones seem rather handy.
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