She said , “ It ’ s much more than that ; it ’ s refueling , connecting , and protecting ,” citing the KC-46 ’ s capabilities and survivability features . The KC-46 gives the crew and fleet situational awareness of the battlespace — an unprecedented capability in a tanker . “ And we keep advancing it ,” said Fox . “ Just last year , the Air Force awarded us a Block 1 upgrade contract . This will allow us to add advanced communications capabilities to further enhance the aircraft ’ s data connectivity and situational awareness .”
Fox , who joined the program a year ago , says the commitment and pride of the team supporting the program has stood out for her since day one . As an Army veteran herself , Fox said “ In the military , the feeling of serving a larger mission always brought us together . I have that same feeling here with our entire Pacific Northwest workforce . We understand the importance of this platform to our customer and I see the pride and sense of service all of our teammates have in every build and delivery .”
In many ways , Fox and Martin are representative of the KC-46 program . Based in Everett , Washington , many passionate people who take pride in their work building the aircraft are veterans like them . When a crew comes to pick up a new KC-46A aircraft , it is a huge morale booster for employees to see the uniformed personnel coming through the factory . Fox shared a story about one teammate , an Air Force veteran , who is passionate about aviation . When he started at Boeing , he aimed to support the tanker because he wanted to give back more to his country .
In addition to the thousands of Boeing employees supporting KC-46 , the program has 37,000 Americans nationwide hard at work today delivering the tanker .
Amra Graham is one of thousands of Boeing employees supporting the KC-46 program . The tanker also has a robust supply chain . In the U . S . alone , more than 650 suppliers employ 37,000 American workers across 43 states . ( Photo credit : Marian Lockheart )
With multi-mission capability for aerial refueling , cargo and passenger transportation , aeromedical evacuation support , and data connectivity at the tactical edge , the combat-ready KC-46 enables rapid air mobility , global reach and Agile Combat Employment . ( Boeing photo )
The 79th KC-46A entered into service for the U . S . Air Force . The Pegasus departed from Boeing ’ s Military Delivery Center in Tukwila , WA headed for Travis Air Force Base in California . ( Photo Credit : Craig Larsen )
20 NORTHWEST AEROSPACE NEWS