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Air Force Considering Possible Autonomous, Stealth Attributes for Future Tanker

Air Force Considering Possible Autonomous, Stealth Attributes for Future Tanker
A KC-46 refuels the B-2 for the first time during developmental flight test over Edwards AFB, Calif. and the Sierra Nevada Mountains on Apr. 23, 2019 (U.S. Air Force Photo)

The U.S. Air Force continues to study what attributes its future KC-Z tanker should have, as the service tries to resolve six Category 1 deficiencies on its Boeing [BA] KC-46A Pegasus tankers--design and product quality faults that raise the possibility that the service may not field all planned KC-46As by the scheduled date of 2029 and may have to move toward a "bridge tanker" sooner. If the Air Force meets its 2029 fielding plan, "there will be 179 KC-46s, and…

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