The U.S. Air Force has accepted the first Boeing KC-46A aerial refueling tanker¹ aircraft.

 

美国空军已接收第一架波音KC-46A空中加油机。
 

 

Boeing said the first four of the KC-46A Pegasus tankers² will be delivered to the McConnell base by the end of the month, while the other four aircraft of the same type will reach Oklahoma's Altus Air Force Base in early February.

 

Boeing is on contract for 52 of an expected 179 tankers for the Air Force, and Thursday's delivery has been delayed for two years, which has cost Boeing a total of 3 billion U.S. dollars for the KC-46 tanker program.

 

The top U.S. aircraft manufacturer said that besides the first refueling plane accepted Thursday, nine aircraft are undergoing customer acceptance testing with the remaining aircraft of the contracted amount in production.

 

The KC-46 tanker was made from the airframe of Boeing's commercial 767 jet and built in Boeing's facility in Everett, Washington state.

 

"The KC-46A is a proven, safe, multi-mission aircraft that will transform aerial refueling and mobility³ operations for decades to come," said Leanne Caret⁴, president and CEO of Boeing Defense⁵, Space and Security.

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