The KC-46A Pegasus, a new Boeing-made machine, has caught our attention with its impressive achievements. In 2022, it set the Air Mobility Command’s record for the longest duration flight, lasting 24.2 hours. It also flew non-stop for 16,000 miles, setting a new distance threshold. Now, it has achieved something even more remarkable: the “world’s first non-stop, KC-46A westbound circumnavigation endurance flight.”
This groundbreaking achievement, known as Project Magellan, took place at the McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas. The plane used for this mission belonged to the 22nd Air Refueling Wing and was part of the Maximum Endurance Operation effort conducted by the AMC to test the limits of the tanker.
The exact route of the mission is undisclosed, but we do know that the plane was airborne for an astounding 45 hours. Two crews, including four pilots, two boom operators, and a brigadier general, were on board. The mission not only aimed to circumnavigate the world but also to prove that refueling other aircraft is possible under such conditions. The Pegasus refueled hungry military airplanes along the route, including B-2 Spirit bombers, C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft, F-15E Strike Eagle jets, and another KC-46 tanker.
During the mission, the Pegasus was also refueled by other tankers positioned after taking off from the Andersen Air Force Base in Guam, the Royal Air Force Mildenhall in the UK, and the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. Both the plane and the crew were under review, with the crew subject to a fatigue study and regular self-administered or on-demand tests.
Looking ahead, the AMC plans to continue pushing the Pegasus to its limits. The goal is to have crews of four pilots capable of flying the planes for up to 48 hours. The Boeing KC-46A Pegasus, first flown in 2014, entered the McConnell AFB arsenal in 2019. The USAF plans to have a fleet of 179 such tanker airplanes in the future.
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