Boeing awarded 15 additional U.S. Air Force KC-46A Tankers

Boeing will build 15 additional KC-46A Pegasus tankers under a Lot 11 contract award from the U.S. Air Force valued at $2.38 billion. In all, Boeing has 168 KC-46A multi-mission aerial refuellers on contract globally, providing advanced capability advantages for the joint force and allies.

“We appreciate our continued partnership with the U.S. Air Force,” said Lynn Fox, vice president and KC-46 program manager. “This is another big milestone for our team, and we look forward to delivering the world’s most advanced multi-mission aerial refuelers for years to come.”

The KC-46A continues to demonstrate its unparalleled capabilities having flown more than 100,000 flight hours and offloaded more than 200 million pounds of fuel to receivers globally. In October, the Pegasus made its inaugural full-scale operational deployment after the U.S. Air Force Air Mobility Command approved the KC-46A for global combat operations in 2022.

In July, the Air Force awarded Boeing a contract to upgrade the mission readiness and performance of the KC-46A tanker. This builds on the 2023 Block 1 upgrade, further enhancing the tanker’s advanced communications, data connectivity and situational awareness for aircraft survivability and operational advantage in contested environments.

Since 2019, Boeing has delivered 89 KC-46As to the U.S. Air Force and four to the Japan Air Self-Defense Force.

The need for tankers, and in particular the Boeing KC-46A, has become even more pressing since the final retirement of the last KC-10 from the USAF inventory on September 27.

McDonnell Douglas’ venerable KC-10 entered service in 1981 and has been a key element of global airpower, supporting combat operations, humanitarian missions and allied partnerships around the world. The KC-10 was designed to provide increased global mobility for the U.S. Armed Forces. While its primary mission was aerial refuelling, it also provided airlift of personnel and equipment during overseas deployments. Beyond combat operations, the KC-10 and its crews provided essential support for humanitarian missions. Its refuelling and cargo capabilities have enabled rapid response to natural disasters, such as hurricane and earthquake relief efforts, ensuring timely delivery of aid to those in need.

During Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in 1991, the KC-10 fleet provided aerial refuelling for U.S. military aircraft as well as other coalition forces. The KC-10 and KC-135 conducted approximately 51,700 separate refuelling operations and delivered 125 million gallons of fuel without missing a single scheduled rendezvous. These numbers demonstrate the often-overlooked importance of aerial refuelling over the decades.