Boeing’s KC-46 tanker face more problems with the and U.S. Air Force

The Boeing and the U.S Air Force now face more problems on planned fixes to the KC-46 tanker due to the lingering issues with the aircraft remote vision system (RVS).

According to a report from Aviation Week, the manufacturer and the service have yet to finalize the upgrades to the RVS and that means a preliminary design review of the system won’t be closed this fall as was previously planned.

Maj. Hope Cronin, spokesperson for Air Mobility Command, said in a separate report from Defense News that overall development of changes needed on the tanker remain on schedule, but that AMC has requested the review remain open longer than scheduled “until resolution is reached to address deficiencies with the panoramic visual system that detects, recognizes and identifies receiver aircraft during aerial refueling rendezvous procedures.”

Cronin didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from the WBJ.

The camera system that helps the tanker refuel other aircraft is one of the major components still needing work three years past the original delivery of the tanker to the USAF.

While Boeing (NYSE: BA) is having to cover the upgrades to that system, the service is paying for a needed redesign to the refueling boom. It is expected to be several years before the tanker is fully operational. Boeing has incurred more than $5 billion in cost overruns on the program.

McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita is the main operating base for the tanker and will eventually be home to 36 of the 179 KC-46s Boeing intends to build for the Air Force.

Wichita-based Spirit AeroSystems Inc. (NYSE: SPR) builds the forward fuselage on the aircraft. bizjournals.com