Boeing’s KC-46 Tanker Completes Key Flight Tests: Boeing’s KC-46 Tanker recently completed aerial refueling initial airworthiness, the latest step on the road to full air refueling capability.
The test plane’s 20th flight on Thursday marked the completion of a series of flight tests that validated the plane’s initial airworthiness to conduct aerial refueling operations, Boeing spokesman Charles Ramey told Defense News.
The team conducted what is called “free air stability” testing and worked to validate the plane’s aerodynamic model during the flights, Ramey said.
The initial airworthiness validation is the first of two major milestones necessary for the new tanker to conduct its core mission, aerial refueling, according to Boeing spokeswoman Caroline Hutcheson.
