Boeing KC-767

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KC-767 Tanker Transport
Image:Boeing KC-767-2.jpg Italian Air Force Boeing KC-767
Description
Role	Air-to-air refueling
Crew	2 pilots & AAR operator
Unit cost	Undisclosed
Primary contractor	Boeing Integrated Defense Systems
Date Deployed	2004
Inventory
Dimensions
Length	159 ft 2 in	48.5 m
Wingspan (to winglet tips)	156 ft 1 in	47.6 m
Height	52 ft	15.8 m
Cargo	2,875 ft³	81.4 m³
Weights
Dry	188,705 lb	85,595 kg
Loaded	284,110 lb	128,870 kg
Max. peace-time take-off weight	412,000 lb	186,880 kg
Powerplant
Engines	Two GE CF6-80C2 turbofan engines
Thrust	63,500 lbf each	282 kN each
Engines	Two P&W PW4000 turbofan engines
Thrust	62,000 lbf each	275 kN each
Performance
Maximum speed	kt	Mach 0.86
Ferry range	9,250 km / Global, with in-flight refueling
Service ceiling	40,100 ft	12,200 m

The Boeing KC-767 Global Tanker Transport Aircraft (GTTA) is a next generation military aerial refueling and strategic transport aircraft developed primarily for the U.S. Air Force from the Boeing 767-200.

Boeing received the first order for the 767 Tanker Transport from Italy in 2001 for four aircraft called KC-767A. The company had further success when the Japan Air Self-Defense Force selected the KC-767 called KC-767J, again for four aircraft and to be fitted an advanced air-refueling boom.

There is wide agreement in U.S. defense circles about the need to replace the aging KC-135 Stratotanker fleet. However, a lease arrangement, whereby Boeing would lease around 100 KC-767 aircraft to the USAF, has become mired in political controversy. U.S. Sen. John McCain, among others, has questioned whether it is really cost-effective for the Air Force to lease aircraft at all, particularly as the aircraft would probably not have many, if any, civilian buyers when their military service was concluded. The United States Department of Justice is now investigating allegations that Boeing finance officer Mike Sears negotiated the recruitment of Darleen Druyun, an Air Force procurement official, while she was still working at the Pentagon, and thereby reached some kind of quid pro quo for a multibillion dollar leasing agreement. The Congressional Budget Office has also criticized the draft leasing agreement as fiscally irresponsible. In December 2003, Boeing CEO Phil Condit resigned in an attempt to bring an end to the "distractions and controversies of the past year."

Boeing, teamed with BAE Systems and British Airways, has also offered the KC-767 to the UK's RAF for its Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft. The Ministry of Defence announced in January 2004 that it had selected the Airbus A330 MRTT to fulfil this requirement. Australia selected the A330, again in competition with the KC-767 in April 2004. While the Airbus does have an overall higher specification than the 767 it seems likely that complications over the USAF deal have dissuaded potential customers who would have liked to purchase the KC-767. It is reported that the RAAF was concerned about the possibility of funding full development that would otherwise be shared with the USAF.

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Non-standard nomenclature

The KC-767 nomenclature is entirely non-standard to usual U.S. military designation sequences. Logically, it could be the KC-44, as C-43 is the highest numerical currently assigned to a U.S. military transport under the Tri-Services system instituted in 1962 at the behest of Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. There have been two recent significant deviations from the usual protocol that may have set a precedent for the out-of-sequence appellation, however. For security reasons, the Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk was given an out-of-sequence designation in the discontinued "Century Series" of fighters, when, in fact, it is a tactical bomber. Further, the in-sequence X-35 Joint Strike Fighter designation, applying only to the proof-of-concept testbeds, was flipped to the out-of-sequence F-35 when Lockheed was declared the winner of the fly-off. By rights, the X-35 should be designated the F-24, following Northrop's unsuccessful YF-23. The congruent numbering of the McDonnell-Douglas KC-10 for the DC-10 commercial model upon which it was based was a happy coincidence that conformed to existing DOD aircraft numbering practice.

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Recent Developments

In January, 2006 Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld announced the cancellation of the KC-767 program. This is designed as a cost cutting measure and as part of a larger reorganization and redefinition of the Air Force's mission that includes the retirement of the E-4B fleet, the cancellation of the Boeing 767 based E-10 program, as well as the elimination of all but 58 B-52's. Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld states that this move will in no way impair the Air Force's ability to deliver the mission of the KC-767 which will be accomplished by continuing upgrades to the KC-135 and KC-10 fleets.

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