The 100th KC-46A Pegasus aerial tanker plane is delivered to the U.S. Air Force on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, at Travis Air Force Base in California. (Brian Collett/U.S. Air Force)
With top brass at the controls, the Air Force this week marked delivery of the 100th new KC-46A Pegasus aerial tanker built by Boeing.
Air Force Lt. Gen. John Healy, chief of the Air Force Reserve, landed the 99th KC-46A at Travis Air Force Base in Northern California on Wednesday, followed closely by the 100th, piloted by Air Mobility Command’s top commander, Gen. John D. Lamontagne.
“Our combined total force ensures we can reach any spot in the world whenever and wherever our nation calls,” Healy told the audience gathered for the delivery milestone.
Originally derived from the Boeing 767 twin-engine commercial airliner, the KC-46A can carry up to 212,299 pounds of fuel. It can also be used for cargo, troop transport and medical evacuation roles.
The Air Force has operated the KC-46A since 2022 and expects the aircraft to remain in service into the 2070s. The plane is built at the Boeing plant in Everett, Wash.
A U.S. Air Force F-16C aircraft conducts in-flight refueling with a KC-46 Pegasus on June 15, 2021, near Joint Base Andrews, Md. (Roslyn Ward/U.S. Air Force)
The KC-46A replaced the KC-10 Extender, a trijet tanker based on the Douglas DC-10 airliner design, which served with the Air Force from 1981 to 2024.
Plans call for 263 aircraft by 2030, with 88 planes from the original order under production and another 75 planned for the “Tanker Production Extension” plan.
The KC-46A is currently assigned to squadrons at eight bases across the country, and two other bases are involved in testing and training.
The Air Force’s active-duty, reserve and National Guard forces continue to operate more than 350 KC-135 Stratotankers, a design based on a variation of the original 707 jet airliner from 1955.
The Air Force has used over 800 KC-135 variants during its seven decades of service. With a Service Life Extension Program in place, the type is expected to remain in service until at least the 2050s.
The KC-46A represents “the continued strengthening of our nation’s global reach and readiness,” Lamontagne told the audience
The Air Force said the KC-46A has “improved refueling systems, enhanced defensive features and expanded cargo capacity to meet modern mission demands.”
The KC-46A design has run into some operational problems; some aircraft receiving in-flight refueling from a KC-46 have been damaged by what the Air Force determined was an overly stiff aerial boom and by limitations on remote controls used by the refueling crews. The shortcomings have led to a redesign of the boom actuator system, according to the Air Force.
The Air Force says the KC-46A is capable of in-flight refueling of a variety of Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and U.S.-allied aircraft, ranging from smaller fighter jets such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon to larger aircraft, such as the B-52 Stratofortress bomber.
An Air Force poster of the KC-46A Pegasus. (Graphic by Christopher Moses/U.S. Air Force)
