Tanker competition a real dogfight | Aviation International News

Tanker competition a real dogfight

The rival contenders for the huge U.S.

By Chris Pocock • Defense Correspondent

June 20, 2007

The rival contenders for the huge U.S. Air Force KC-X competition for a new aerial tanker have been briefing the relative merits of the KC-30 and the KC-767 all round the show this week. But political considerations apart–and there are plenty of those–it all boils down to a simple fact: size matters.

The KC-30 that is proposed by the EADS/Northrop Grumman team can be viewed at the end of the flight line–and it’s a big bird. As Northrop Grumman CEO Dr. Ron Sugar noted Tuesday, that means “more refueling capability, more station-holds and more cargo.” Since it is based on an A330-200 commercial airliner, Sugar was also able to claim that the KC-30 is a more modern platform than the KC-767, which derives from Boeing’s 767-200.

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