The Air Force and Boeing [BA] on Friday successfully completed the first flight of a KC-46A aerial refueling tanker, according to a company statement.
The aircraft took off at roughly 4:24 p.m. EDT from Paine Field in Everett, Wash., and landed four hours later at Boeing Field in Seattle. During the flight, Boeing test pilots performed operational checks on engines, flight controls and environmental systems and took the tanker to a maximum altitude of 35,000 feet before landing.
Air Force Col. Christopher Coombs, KC-46 system program manager, said Friday in a statement the Air Force and Boeing will now begin free air stability tests and flight controls of the boom and wing aerial refueling pods (WARP) before conducting aerial refueling tests where the KC-46 will make contact with other military aircraft. Milestone C testing is expected later this year, Boeing KC-46 Vice President and Program Manager Tim Peters said Monday in a statement. A Milestone C decision is expected in 2016.
The Boeing team was slated to perform a post-flight inspection on Friday and will also calibrate instrumentation before the next series of flights, during which the tanker boom and WARP systems will be deployed. The next flight could take place this week.