Air Force, Boeing Trying to Tackle Tanker Challenges.

• Author: Tadjdeh, Yasmin

The KC-46A Pegasus program --which will replace part of the Air Force's fleet of aging aerial refueling tankers--has been dogged by problems for years. As the Air Force and Boeing work to fix remaining issues, officials and executives say the aircraft is finally on the right track.

Boeing has been working on the program--which was structured as a fixed-priced contract--for more than a decade and has eaten about $5 billion in cost overruns.

The program has faced several issues in recent years, most notably problems with its remote vision system. However, both Boeing and the Air Force say the program is turning a corner.

"While we work to rectify some discrepancies, we stand behind the KC-46 and believe it will be a great refueling capability for decades to come," said Lt. Gen. David Nahom, the Air Force's deputy chief of staff for plans and programs. "Even today, it has taken on many of the day-to-day refueling requirements and... our plan is to make full use of the KC-46 in the near term, while fixing discrepancies as soon as possible."

The platform will be a key asset for the Air Force, he added during a Senate Armed Services airland subcommittee hearing in June. "We are getting use out of it right now, not just in limited air refueling, but also in airlift and air medical evacuation."

In July, the service announced that Air Mobility Command Commander Gen. Jacqueline Van Ovost approved the centerline drogue system mission set as the Pegasus' first interim capability release to meet joint force air refueling requirements.

The move will allow for more daily "taskable" operational capabilities and increase capacity for tanker fleet requirements, according to the Air Force.

"The last six months of operational use and programmatic evaluation indicate conditions have been met for ICR declaration of the centerline drogue system mission set," Van Ovost said in a statement. "This decision reflects a risk-informed, data-driven, constraint-analyzed approach to releasing KC-46A operational capabilities to the joint force."

In August, Van Ovost approved a second interim capability release mission set for the air refueling boom, according to the service.

However, while the KC-46's critical technologies are fully mature, the program continues to experience design instability, according to a recent Government Accountability Office report, "Weapon Systems Annual Assessment," that was released in June.

The government watchdog flagged six critical...