First Aircraft to Receive ABMS Upgrades
Nov. 25, 2020 | By Brian W. Everstine
The Air Force’s aerial refueling fleet could be the first platform to adopt new technologies developed under the Advanced Battle Management System effort, integrating pods complete with advanced communications and data links to feed information, along with gas, to combat aircraft as early as next year.
The Air Force is evaluating new technologies, both hardware and software, under ABMS to create an “internet of military things†that will connect sensors and shooters at machine speeds. So far, no actual systems have been purchased, but Department of the Air Force acquisition boss Will Roper said Nov. 24 he could see the service push the new pods out to its KC-135, KC-10, or KC-46 fleets in the near future, revolutionizing the tanker’s role in a fight.
https://www.airforcemag.com/tankers-likely-the-first-aircraft-to-receive-abms-upgrades/
