{"id":18028,"date":"2020-01-06T21:05:49","date_gmt":"2020-01-06T21:05:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2020\/01\/06\/what-if-air-force-tankers-became-a-communications-node\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:42:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:42:20","slug":"what-if-air-force-tankers-became-a-communications-node","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2020\/01\/06\/what-if-air-force-tankers-became-a-communications-node\/","title":{"rendered":"What if Air Force tankers became a communications node?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. \u2014 For decades, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/air\/2019\/12\/13\/the-air-force-needs-more-tankers-could-the-defense-industry-have-the-answer\/\" target=_blank>the Air Force\u2019s tanker fleet<\/a> have logged hours transferring fuel, transporting troops and serving as flying ambulances. Soon,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/digital-show-dailies\/airlift-tanker-annual\/2018\/10\/27\/tankers-could-be-critical-part-of-the-air-forces-future-network\/\" target=_blank> the tankers could add another mission to the list<\/a>: relaying communications data as part of the Air Force\u2019s new mesh network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Air Mobility Command leaders are exploring whether aerial refueling aircraft could become a communications node in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/digital-show-dailies\/paris-air-show\/2019\/07\/09\/rule-no1-for-air-forces-new-advanced-battle-management-system-we-dont-start-talking-platforms-until-the-end\/\" target=\"_blank\">Advanced Battle Management System<\/a>, Lt. Gen. Jon Thomas, the organization\u2019s deputy commander, told Defense News in a December interview.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/battlefield-tech\/c2-comms-battlefield-tech\/2019\/12\/27\/what-happens-if-the-air-forces-command-center-for-all-its-tankers-and-cargo-planes-gets-hacked\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"199\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/DSC_0502.JPG.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">What happens if the Air Force\u2019s command center for all its tankers and cargo planes gets hacked?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Here&#039;s what happened after the network shut down.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force is investing in ABMS as the foundational technology to connect its air, space and cyber assets together with platforms from the other military services \u2014 a concept the Air Force interchangeably calls multidomain command and control (MDC2) or joint all domain control (JADC2). The service<a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/air\/2019\/12\/21\/the-air-force-just-conducted-the-first-test-of-its-advanced-battle-management-system\/\" target=_blank> conducted its first test of the Advanced Battle Management System in December,<\/a> which linked Air Force and Navy fighters, a naval destroyer, and an Army unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe have to build a network force that supports then the ABMS architecture, that supports and is an element of overall JADC2,\u201d Thomas said. \u201cOn a theater level, air mobility can significantly contribute to that, and I would say it starts with the tanker.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tankers are well-suited to be used as communications nodes for two reasons, Thomas said. One, aerial refueling planes are typically large, wide-body aircraft that have enough excess space and power to host additional communication systems. The second is their location during combat. One way to operate tanker aircraft is to position them near a contested airspace, close enough for fighters and other airborne assets to refuel as needed before returning to battle, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf you\u2019re in that spot, you also have a great opportunity by virtue of that position. You can communicate to a lot of different assets if you have the right equipment on the tanker. You can communicate line of sight to other air assets. You can communicate line of sight possibly to some assets on the surface,\u201d Thomas said. \u201cIf you have the ability to get to the space layer and communicate, then you can also be a pathway from line-of-sight to beyond line-of-sight, to the space layer. If you have a resilient space architecture, then you can lateral across and then come back down to a ground entry point.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force\u2019s newest tanker, the KC-46, has communications and defensive systems that would allow it to become a communications relay without needing significant upgrades, Thomas said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Meanwhile, the service is modernizing a portion of its KC-135 workhorses with a suite of modifications it calls \u201cRealtime Information to the Cockpit.\u201d The Air Force committed $49 million for the upgrades, which Rockwell Collins will perform. The upgrades include the addition of the NATO-standard Link 16 data link as well as other communications equipment supporting the transmission of classified information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat will bring a data link capability and a [satellite communications] capability on the [KC-135] that it doesn\u2019t have,\u201d Thomas said. \u201cWe need to do more. We only have funding for 50 right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Air Mobility Command would also like further communications upgrades for the KC-135 that would allow it to become a node in ABMS, and is talking with<a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/2019\/02\/06\/the-air-forces-jstars-alternative-has-a-new-architect-wait-whats-an-architect\/\" target=_blank> Preston Dunlap, the Air Force\u2019s chief architect and manager of the ABMS program<\/a>, about ways to involve tankers in upcoming \u201cconnect-a-thons\u201d that will prove whether previously unconnected platforms can share data.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/battlefield-tech\/2019\/11\/12\/us-air-force-to-link-f-35-with-f-22-in-connect-a-thon-experiment\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"203\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/F-35-F-22.JPG.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Air Force to link F-35, F-22 in \u2018connect-a-thon\u2019 experiment<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Will Roper wants a new connect-a-thon every four months to keep tests moving quickly.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cExperimentation is \u2026 the next step,\u201d he said. \u201cWhat are the additional waveforms that [we] need to have for line of sight? What are the additional ways that we can connect to the space layer?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One endeavor already underway is the Global Lightning experiment, in which a KC-135 will be outfitted with equipment for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/battlefield-tech\/space\/2019\/07\/17\/are-leo-satellites-approaching-a-breaking-point-for-the-pentagon\/\" target=\"_blank\">communication with SpaceX\u2019s Starlink<\/a> \u2014 a planned \u201cmegaconstellation\u201d of hundreds of satellites in low-Earth orbit set to provide high-bandwidth commercial internet \u2014 as well as other equipment from vendors such as Iridium and L3Harris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt&#8217;s one thing to have to engineer it and cut a hole in the skin of the airplane, and put an antenna and do some internal racks and all that,\u201d Thomas said. The bigger question will be whether the Air Force can put new technologies on the tanker quickly and grow them over time, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFar too often in the past, we have had great ideas and great capabilities that we put on airplanes,\u201d he said. \u201c[But] we\u2019ve had no ability to go further because either the information is proprietary to a certain vendor, or we didn\u2019t build in the size, weight, power cooling, thermal management that would allow us to add more equipment or have more capability.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Aerial refueling tankers could play a role in the Air Force&#8217;s advanced battle management 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