The US Air Force decided to wait and did not approve a new project of the RVS refueling video system for the Boeing KC-46 flying tanker. As he writes Breaking Defense, the military is not satisfied with the work of the tanker's panoramic view system. This is a separate set of cameras that should determine what kind of aircraft is flying up to the tanker for fuel.
KC-46 - refueling aircraft of the new generation. Boeing has been developing them since 2012 on the basis of the cargo version of the 767 airliner. This aircraft can reach speeds of up to 920 kilometers per hour, cover a distance of up to 12.2 thousand kilometers and carry up to 92 tons of fuel.
The US Air Force received the first serial KC-46A Pegasus in 2019 - two years later than planned and with a number of shortcomings. For example, the video system of three-dimensional control of the RVS refueling rod distorted the perspective, preventing the operator from correctly estimating the distance to the refueled aircraft. And because of an error in the video system software, the image on the monitors could become blurry when the cameras adjusted to the lighting.
To increase the clarity of the image, Boeing was going to update the KC-46A software by the end of last year, and by 2024 install 4K color cameras, enlarged monitors, a laser rangefinder and an augmented reality system on it.
The defense of the project of the second version of the refueling video system was planned for the fall, but the US Air Force decided to postpone it due to problems with the panoramic view system of the flying tanker. The task of the latter is to determine what kind of aircraft flies up to the KC-46 for fuel. Although it is a separate system, during refueling it interacts with RVS and under certain lighting and weather conditions does not meet their military requirements.
Despite the unresolved issues, the US Air Force this summer allowed the KC-46 to use the "hose-cone" systems under the center section and the refueling rod in a limited mode. The flying tanker has two more "hose-cone" systems on the left and right wing consoles.
Vasilisa Chernyavtseva
