The United States Air Force KC-135 fleet is nearly 50 years old; recent studies show that it is time for the recapitalization of this tanker fleet. The present inventory of aircraft went through many upgrades and modifications, but all are still the basic A-model aircraft initially purchased by the Air Force in the late 1950s. The Air Force needs to replace this aged aircraft by designing a new tanker from the ground up, capable of responding to the threat environment of today and the future. The KC-135 aircraft has been an outstanding platform for aerial refueling, and through some enhancements it has been able to leverage some of its capabilities in airlift and communication. However, the Air Force has the opportunity with its next class of tankers to field a new tanker with capabilities that can serve all the services in the more demanding joint and coalition warfare of the future. In this paper, the author challenges air mobility warriors to develop a tanker force structure that overcomes the thinking of old to launch new concepts and capabilities for the future tanker. He argues that the future of warfare will require a tanker that is able to operate as a force enabler across the full spectrum of operations. This research is timely in that the Boeing 767 is being looked at as a replacement for some of the older KC-135s. In contrast to some of the 767's capabilities, he outlines a conceptual tanker that combines airlift and aerial- refueling capabilities and is able to survive in a combat environment, and he leverages its ability to act as a platform to enhance network-centric warfare. He points out that while the 'Cadillac' of all tankers may only be conceived in the minds of Airmen, the tanker of the future cannot resemble the single-role tanker of the past. A 33-item bibliography is included. (2 figures, 44 refs.).
Tanker Force Structure: Recapitalization of the KC-135
2004
40 pages
Report
Keine Angabe
Englisch
Aircraft , Military Operations, Strategy, & Tactics , Military requirements , Military capabilities , Tanker aircraft , Military modernization , Aircraft design , Air force , Commercial aircraft , Military aircraft , Survivability , Threats , Combat readiness , History , Replacement , Design criteria , Airlift operations , Refueling in flight , Kc-135 aircraft
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