Adding Agility to Air Mobility
Written by Michael Isherwood
No other nation can logistically support air, land and maritime operations through the air. However, the current mobility fleet is stressed.
The backbone of the air refueling fleet, the KC-135, is old. The first was delivered to Castle Air Force base in 1957. Today, the average age of the fleet is 49 years old.
By comparison, the C-17 is younger, having started flying in 1991. With the pace of current operations, however, these aircraft are logging 1,500 to 1,800 hours a year—almost twice the planned hours. General Art Lichte, the Air Force’s top mobility general, told John A. Tirpak for Air Force Magazine, “We know we’re going so fast that … instead of a 30-year life, [the C-17] is going to have a 25-year life, or 22.”
Against this backdrop, the Air Force will again request the aerospace industry to provide options to replace the KC-135 tanker aircraft. Urgently needed, this acquisition program provides an opportunity to change the game in terms of how the tanker and airlift fleets are used.
In the past, KC-135s were dedicated to air refueling operations and limited airlift since it is rather inefficient carrying just six pallets. By comparison, the KC-10 was more effective performing a dual tanker-transport role; however, this fleet is just too few in numbers.
The KC-45, Northrop Grumman’s offer, showcases how the nextgeneration tanker will really be a next-generation mobility aircraft. Carrying 245,000 pounds of gas—22 percent more than the KC-135—220 passengers and 32 pallets, it can support airlift and air refueling missions simultaneously.
Exploiting its multi-mission capacity offers dramatic savings—in money and time. For instance, when deploying an F-15 squadron to Korea, the current KC-135/C-17 team would require 34 sorties. By comparison, the KC-45 could move the nearly 600 ops and maintenance personnel plus 1 million pounds of support equipment with only 19 aircraft. And the squadron would arrive sooner.
In a similar manner, if the U.S. needed to reinforce operations in Afghanistan with an infantry brigade, a current fleet of KC-135s, C-17s and Commercial Reserve Air Fleet would require 21 days and 860 sorties. With the KC-45, the soldiers arrive in 15 days requiring 629 sorties. An aircraft that offers commanders the adaptability to meet multiple missions will be of immense value to future generations of airmen and the warfighters who rely on the assured capability that the C-17 and KC-135 fleets provide today. The unpredictable strategic environment reinforces the prudence and value in selecting the airframe that maximizes flexibility. ♦
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Michael Isherwood is a senior analyst with the Northrop Grumman Analysis Center.