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... something about Boeing doing tasks fast, adding to inflation expectation am guessing
dunno how these planes are supposed to stand ups to the rigours of action over the S China Sea that is populated by the likes of J15, J16, J20 and J35, and soon, the J36 and J50, sporting PL15, PL17 and PL-xx (1,000 km / 621 miles range)
Without refuelling planes, F35, F22, and F14, 15, 16, and 18 all useless, and without air-cover, everything else on the surface also useless, and if everything useless as a partner for alliances also superfluous
Am told have no reason to expect the ICBM missiles to be in better shape as they are by the same sort of for-profit companies
If above be all substantially true, Nasdaq, DJIA, and S&P500 along with the $ reset to more realistic levels, one might reasonably suppose
Gold should go much higher, making all gold savers good-good Message 35065882 and gold strategic
Boeing’s KC-46 faces new crisis as cracks halt deliveries fast?
Summarise?
On Mar 1, 2025 On March 1, 2025, Boeing’s KC-46 Pegasus tanker program hit yet another turbulence patch as structural cracks were discovered in two of four new aircraft slated for delivery to the U.S. Air Force’s Military Delivery Center. The revelation, first reported exclusively by The War Zone, sent shockwaves through the defense community, prompting an immediate halt to all KC-46A deliveries.
Photo credit: Boeing According to the outlet’s sources, the cracks emerged during routine pre-delivery inspections at Boeing’s Everett, Washington facility, where technicians identified anomalies not on the wings or control surfaces but within the airframe’s primary and secondary structural components.
The Air Force corroborated this to The War Zone, with a spokesperson noting, “Boeing identified cracks on two aircraft and has paused deliveries pending a full investigation into the cause and scope of this issue.” The service wasted no time, announcing plans to scrutinize all 89 operational KC-46A tankers in its fleet to determine if this is a freak occurrence or a deeper flaw baked into the design.
Boeing, for its part, issued a terse statement: “We are collaborating with the Air Force to assess this potential issue and mitigate any impact to in-service and in-production aircraft.” The stakes couldn’t be higher for a program already limping under the weight of past troubles.
The KC-46 Pegasus has been trickling into Air Force service since 2019, with 89 aircraft delivered by November 2024 across multiple bases stretching from Kansas to New Hampshire. The saga began in February 2011, when Boeing clinched the $35 billion KC-X contract to build 179 tankers, tasked with replacing the Eisenhower-era KC-135 Stratotankers and the Cold War-vintage KC-10 Extenders.
The first pair touched down at McConnell Air Force Base on January 25, 2019, a milestone marred by immediate scrutiny over the refueling boom’s performance. That year saw 13 more delivered, followed by 14 in 2020 as Altus AFB in Oklahoma joined the roster. In 2021, 12 arrived, with Pease Air National Guard Base in New Hampshire entering the mix.
The pace held firm with 15 in 2022 and 14 in 2023, supporting a growing operational footprint. By November 2024, Lot 11—a $2.4 billion deal for 15 additional KC-46s—pushed the total to 89, with four of those now sidelined by cracks.
The Air Force has 158 tankers under contract, meaning 69 remain in production or planning to hit the full 179 mark, while Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force has taken four of its six ordered Pegasus jets since 2021. This slow but steady rollout reflects a program dogged by engineering hiccups and ballooning costs, now facing a fresh test of its mettle.
Structural cracks in an aerial refueling tanker aren’t just a maintenance headache—they’re a mission killer. The KC-46 is built to loiter at 40,000 feet, pumping fuel into F-35s or B-52s over hostile skies, often lugging 212,000 pounds of JP-8 while dodging threats.
Cracks in primary structures—like the fuselage backbone or load-bearing bulkheads—or secondary supports threaten the airframe’s ability to withstand the pressures of flight, let alone the dynamic stresses of boom extension or drogue deployment. Imagine a tanker mid-mission, tethered to a fighter over the South China Sea, when a crack widens under the strain—fuel lines could rupture, control could falter, or the airframe could buckle entirely, dooming both aircraft and their crews.
History offers grim lessons: the 1989 Aloha Airlines 737 incident, where fatigue cracks tore the roof off mid-flight, underscores how structural flaws can escalate. For the KC-46, even hairline fractures could degrade performance, forcing slower speeds or lower altitudes that expose it to enemy fire.
Left unchecked, this could cripple the Air Force’s global reach, stranding bombers in the Pacific or transports in Europe, while repair downtime risks sidelining squadrons at a time when Russia and China are flexing their muscles. Boeing’s already swallowed $7.5 billion in losses on this fixed-price deal—new fixes could push that figure higher, testing taxpayer patience and Pentagon goodwill.
The KC-46A Pegasus is a beast of adaptation, born from the Boeing 767-2C freighter airframe but reengineered into a military workhorse. Spanning 165 feet with a 156-foot wingspan, it’s propelled by twin Pratt & Whitney PW4062 turbofans, each churning out 62,000 pounds of thrust for a 650-mph cruise speed. Its fuel capacity tops 212,000 pounds, delivered through a fly-by-wire refueling boom or centerline drogue at 1,200 gallons per minute, compatible with everything from A-10s to Typhoons via NATO-standard probes.
Inside, a 787-derived digital cockpit boasts six 15.1-inch Collins Aerospace displays, giving crews a panoramic view of refueling ops via 3D cameras—a fix for earlier vision system woes. Beyond gas, it hauls 18 pallets, 114 passengers, or 58 medevac patients, doubling as a logistics lifeline.
Defensively, Northrop Grumman’s LAIRCM system jams infrared missiles, while Raytheon’s ALR-69A radar warning receiver and anti-jam GPS keep it viable in contested zones. Since 2019, the fleet’s racked up over 100,000 flight hours, offloading 200 million pounds of fuel across exercises like Red Flag and its first combat-zone deployment to CENTCOM in October 2024.
Yet, its boom struggles—stiff actuators unable to mate with lighter jets—and now these cracks reveal a platform still short of its promised potential, a far cry from the KC-135’s 60-year reliability.
The reaction from military brass and lawmakers has been swift and sharp. Maj. Emily Thompson, an Air Force spokesperson, told The War Zone, “These cracks aren’t on flight surfaces or hinges but in primary and secondary structures—we’re inspecting every KC-46A to see how far this goes.”
Boeing doubled down, stating, “We’re laser-focused on root cause analysis and expect to resume deliveries by Q3 2025 once we’ve validated a fix.” On Capitol Hill, Sen. Patty Murray [D-Wash.], whose state hosts Boeing’s tanker line, didn’t mince words at a February 2025 Senate hearing: “The KC-46’s delays and defects are a national security liability—we need it fixed by summer’s end, or we’re handing adversaries an edge.”
Gen. Mike Minihan, Air Mobility Command chief, echoed that urgency in a January 2025 presser: “This tanker is our lifeline to global power projection; Boeing’s got until August 2025 to get it right, or we’re in real trouble.”
Analysts like retired Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski, a former Pentagon insider, told Defense News, “This isn’t just a Boeing problem—it’s a symptom of rushed production and lax oversight, and the Air Force can’t afford half-measures now.”The consensus is clear: the clock’s ticking, with summer 2025 as the line in the sand for a program that’s run out of excuses.
Photo credit: Boeing