KC-46 tanker test puts fuel boom operator, not copilot, in cockpit
By Rachel S. Cohen
Oct 31, 02:36 PM
The Air Force is moving forward with experiments to test whether a two-person crew could safely fly a KC-46 Pegasus tanker in an emergency.
A solo pilot and a fuel boom operator with the 22nd Air Refueling Wing at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, on Oct. 25 took to the skies for two KC-46 sorties on a military test range, the service said Oct. 28.
Flying tankers without copilots is one idea Air Mobility Command is trying out as it considers the tactics it may need in a possible military conflict with China. The Air Force has stressed that approach would not be the norm.
Air Force considers removing co-pilot from Boeing KC-46 tanker crews
The idea could reduce potential troop casualties during wartime refueling missions.
By Rachel S. Cohen
Launching missions with a skeleton crew could lessen the number of potential American casualties in case of attack, or make the crew more nimble in a crisis. Multiple small crews could swap out in shifts during around-the-clock sorties, another concept the Air Force is fleshing out..
https://www.defensenews.com/news/your-air-force/2022/10/31/kc-46-tanker-test-puts-fuel-boom-operator-not-copilot-in-cockpit/
