{"id":79840,"date":"2026-04-27T21:12:27","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T21:12:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2026\/04\/27\/us-air-force-seeks-39-billion-to-boost-kc-46-fleet\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T17:37:42","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T17:37:42","slug":"us-air-force-seeks-39-billion-to-boost-kc-46-fleet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2026\/04\/27\/us-air-force-seeks-39-billion-to-boost-kc-46-fleet\/","title":{"rendered":"US Air Force seeks $3.9 billion to boost KC-46 fleet"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force is asking Congress for $3.9 billion to buy 15 Boeing KC-46A Pegasus tankers in fiscal 2027, an $800 million increase over fiscal 2026, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/comptroller.war.gov\/Budget-Materials\/Budget2027\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\">Air Force budget materials<\/a> released April 21. Annual procurement is expected to rise to 18 aircraft per year from 2028 to 2031.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The service also clarified plans for the size of its KC-46 fleet. Procurement figures in the fiscal 2027 budget document initially indicated a goal of 319 aircraft, but the Air Force corrected that number on April 24, confirming the program of record is 263 KC-46As, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensedaily.com\/319-kc-46as-now-planned-increase-of-nearly-60-from-extension-and-140-from-original-program-of-record\/air-force\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\">Defense Daily reported<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The expansion runs through the Tanker Production Extension program, which extends Boeing\u2019s existing KC-46 contract rather than launching a new competition for a \u201cbridge tanker\u201d that Airbus and Embraer had hoped to bid on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe KC-46 is planned to fully replace the Air Force\u2019s KC-135 fleet, providing critical refueling capabilities to project power, maintain strategic deterrence, and defend the Homeland,\u201d the Air Force said in <a href=\"https:\/\/aviationweek.com\/defense\/multi-mission-aircraft\/us-air-force-plans-increase-kc-46-fleet-size\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\">a statement<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/comptroller.war.gov\/Portals\/45\/Documents\/defbudget\/FY2027\/FY2027_p1.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\">Budget justification documents<\/a> show a unit cost of $199.8 million in fiscal 2027, rising to $321.9 million in fiscal 2028.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even as the service commits to a long-term investment in the aircraft, the program\u2019s technical problems persist. In May 2025, then-Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin told the House Appropriations defense subcommittee that the KC-46 still has five Category 1 deficiencies, two of which stem from the Remote Vision System. The replacement system, RVS 2.0, is now projected to be fielded in summer 2027 \u2014 three years behind its original schedule. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Air Force budget materials state that the service expects all KC-46 shortfalls to be resolved by 2028. To date, Boeing has absorbed more than $7 billion in losses on the KC-46 under the program\u2019s firm fixed-price development contract.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fiscal 2027 request arrives as Operation Epic Fury exposes how heavily the joint force depends on aerial refueling. Tanker crews have sustained near-continuous airborne presence over the Middle East throughout the operation, refueling fighters and bombers operating against Iranian targets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That demand has come at a cost. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/your-military\/2026\/03\/16\/iran-missile-strike-damages-five-kc-135-tankers-in-saudi-arabia-officials-say\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\">An Iranian missile strike damaged multiple KC-135s<\/a> on the ground at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, while another went down in western Iraq on March 12 during a refueling-related incident. It was the first loss of a U.S. Air Force tanker in more than a decade. U.S. Central Command said the incident was not due to hostile or friendly fire. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fiscal 2027 request also redirects Next-Generation Aerial Refueling System funding toward <a href=\"https:\/\/comptroller.war.gov\/Portals\/45\/Documents\/defbudget\/FY2027\/FY2027_r1.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\">a new Advanced Tanker Systems effort<\/a> focused on mission systems and survivability upgrades rather than a new airframe. Operational fielding of a next-generation tanker remains unlikely before the mid-2030s.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The service also clarified plans for the size of its KC-46 fleet. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":111094,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":67,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,24,16,26,67],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3417],"class_list":["post-79840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-air-force"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"FQTLLL5YD5FKNNB4ZFQJ225P4U","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-military\/2026\/04\/27\/us-air-force-seeks-39-billion-to-boost-kc-46-fleet\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented 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