Rather than hold a competition between Boeing [BA] and Airbus on a tanker that would have served as a step toward the Next Generation Air Refueling System (NGAS), the U.S. Air Force has determined that development of such a mid-stage tanker is unaffordable and that the service will instead focus on accelerating NGAS by four years--from 2040 to 2036--and buying another 75 Boeing KC-46A Pegasus tankers between 2031 and 2036. The Air Force plans to have 188 KC-46As by 2030.…
