KC-46A beddown on path for success

  • Published
  • By Susan Scheuer
  • AFCEC Public Affairs
JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas --  The Air Force is on target for the beddown of its KC-46A Pegasus aerial tanker fleet.

In support of the beddown, the Air Force Civil Engineer Center is managing a total of 27 construction projects across three locations. Initial beddown projects will be completed by 2016, with the remaining projects extending thru 2019.

McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, was selected as the first main operating base, or MOB1, for the aircraft while Altus AFB, Oklahoma, was selected to serve as the formal training unit. Tinker AFB, Oklahoma, will serve as a depot for heavy maintenance activities.

Sixteen projects, valued at $238 million, are currently underway at McConnell, including construction of three hangars with a total of six bays, modifications to an apron fuel distribution system, expansion of a parking apron, and construction of a flight simulator facility, fuselage trainer, maintenance shop and dormitory.

The hangar construction projects, valued at $162 million, are proceeding according to schedule, with two hangars expected to be complete in early 2016 and the third in 2017.

The flight simulator facility is being constructed in two phases. The first phase, which includes a flight simulator and a boom simulator, recently began. The second phase, which doubles the training capacity by adding an additional flight simulator and boom simulator, is in the design stage.

A contract to build the fuselage trainer, where Airmen will learn to load freight and fuel cells onto the planes, was recently awarded.

Construction of the student dormitory is well underway with expected completion in fall 2016. Once complete, the 19,170 square-foot facility will house up to 48 Airmen.
In fiscal 2019, when the MOB1 beddown is complete, McConnell will be home to 36 KC-46A aircraft.

Six projects, valued at $48 million, are currently underway at Altus AFB; four are currently under construction and two are in the design phase. The initial flight training center is more than 50-percent complete, with expected partial occupancy this fall and full occupancy by the end of the year. Upon completion, the center will house four flight simulators to provide initial and ongoing pilot training, as well as training for boom operators for in-flight refueling.

A first fuselage trainer facility is scheduled for completion with the FTC, and will provide Airmen with a facility to practice cargo build-up and loading.

Additionally, existing buildings are under renovation to provide administrative, operations and storage areas, as well as other structural upgrades.

Future plans at Altus include construction of a second FTC and two additional simulators, as well as the expansion of existing hangars.

"The success of the KC-46 beddown construction program at McConnell and Altus can be attributed to the outstanding teamwork of Air Mobility Command, Air Education and Training Command, the bases and AFCEC, and of course the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers with their design teams and construction contractors," said Tom Hodges, the AFCEC branch chief overseeing the beddown. "From the initial planning led by the Air Mobility Command Installation and Mission Support team through the ongoing design and construction, the primary team members have continued to remain actively engaged in all aspects of the projects to ensure the successful completion of the construction program."

At Tinker, where $174 million in projects have been budgeted, land acquisition and surveying of 156 acres has been completed and construction is underway for the base expansion. Upon completion, Tinker will initially have two hangars with three docks to provide aircraft service as well as the infrastructure required to support the depot, to include parking aprons, taxiways and a systems integrations lab for testing of electronic aircraft components and software updates.

Hodges expects AFCEC's ability to strategically contract the effort will allow this complex beddown project to be streamlined for maximum efficiency, saving the Air Force time and money.

"The overall fiscal 2014 KC-46A military construction program is progressing on schedule at McConnell, Altus and Tinker Air Force bases," said Alexander Karibean, KC-46A lead at Air Mobility Command Installation and Mission Support . "Of the challenges encountered, AFCEC's Facility Engineering Directorate's mobility support team has been exceptional in aggressively tackling the project management efforts to keep the KC-46A beddown on track."