Combining capability, survivability and versatility, the US Air Force's KC-46A Pegasus is seen by many as the world's most advanced multi-mission aerial refueling aircraft.

With a modernized refueling system, the Pegasus is capable of refueling receiver aircraft in flight more efficiently than its predecessor, the legacy KC-135 tanker.

In addition, the Pegasus features defensive countermeasures to detect and avoid threats, and can be converted between cargo, passenger and aeromedical evacuation modes in two hours.

"This tanker will begin to be assigned to non-traditional roles," Capt. Steven Strickland, 22nd Air Refueling Wing Operations Support Squadron chief of wing tactics, said in a press release after a December 2022 training exercise.

"We are providing a lot more flexibility and capability to the war fighter by providing more options and enhancing decision making. We are helping them achieve their goals in a much more efficient and cost-effective way."

With a 212,229-pound (96,265kg) fuel capacity, the Pegasus is capable of hauling 12,229 more pounds (5,546kg) of fuel than the KC-135, which was first deployed in 1956.

As of October 2023, the US Air Force had 128 of the Pegasus aircraft under contract, 75 of which have been delivered and are in use.

The Pegasus aircraft is scheduled to be delivered to partner nations including Israel and Japan, and Indonesia and India have considering purchasing the aircraft.

Refueling capabilities

The Pegasus can support US Air Force, US Navy and US Marine Corps aircraft.

At full operational capacity, the Pegasus will be able to refuel most fixed-wing, receiver-capable aircraft. It is equipped with a refueling boom driven by a fly-by-wire control system, along with a hose and drogue system that is independently operable from the boom system, allowing for additional mission capability.

Rather than a traditional boom system that relies on boom operators looking out of the back of the jet through a window, upgraded versions of the KC-46A will feature a new Aerial Refueling Operator Station that will allow for boom operators to use a series of multi-spectral cameras and a hybrid 2D/3D remote system, The Drive reports.

One advantage of the new system is that it will allow operators to execute their missions in blackout conditions. The new operator station is set to be implemented pending fixes to its remote vision system.

The aircraft is also capable of being equipped with wing aerial refueling pods, which allow it to refuel two aircraft at the same time, according to Air and Space Forces Magazine.

Most of the US Air Force tanker fleet rely on a centerline drogue system capable of refueling only one aircraft at a time. In 2019, the Pegasus successfully completed testing of its wing aerial refueling pods.

"Fighter pilots usually show up in pairs and each has to watch and wait while their wingman refuels," said Maj. Jacob Lambach, KC-46 experimental test pilot with the 418th Flight Test Squadron.

"Fighters' combat mission isn't to sit behind the tanker, it's to fight. If we can refuel them both at the same time, they each only spend half as much time out of the fight."

Providing protection to airmen

The Pegasus also features enhanced survivability features, including Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures (LAIRCM), a modified Radar Warning Receiver (RWR), and a Tactical Situational Awareness System.

The suite is capable of correlating threat information and prompting the crew with an automatic re-routing suggestion in the event of an unexpected threat. A fuel tank inerting system and integral armor provide additional protection to the crew and critical systems.

In December 2022, two KC-46A Pegasus aircraft took off on a long endurance flight as part of a Long Range Strike Capability Mission in support of long-range precision strike training in the Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility.

The Pegasus showed they could provide receiver aircraft the flexibility to stay in the air for longer-than-expected missions, or in the event scheduled tankers did not show up, Strickland said in the December 2022 press release.

"This mission highlighted both endurance operations and the close integration between multiple platforms and capabilities," Col. Nate Vogel, 22nd Air Refueling Wing commander, said in the press release.

"Our amazing Airmen, from aircrew to support personnel, tirelessly work to provide capability to combatant commanders while continuing to be at the forefront of the operational evolution of tankers."