Not Getting Any Younger, Not Getting Any Older Either
Today, the average U.S. Air Force tanker is 43 years old, says
Bob Gower, VP for the 767 Tanker program at Boeing Defense. If
Boeing's proposal to lease 100 new 767 tankers to the USAF-approved
in May-proceeds as planned, the average age of the fleet in 2011
will be... 43 years. "The idea is not to modernize the fleet
but to stop the aging process," Gower says.
Boeing's strategy to pursue the world's tanker market on a commercial
basis is paying off, Gower says. "We launched the 767 tanker
as a commercial development program "because we saw pent-up
demand and we wanted to be the first to market.
"We launched it internationally with the intent to bring
it back to the U.S.-it's usually the other way around."
In mid-July, the first 767 tanker will leave the Everett factory
and go to Wichita, where its fueling equipment will be installed.
It will be delivered to the Italian Air Force in late 2005, followed
by three more aircraft that will be modified in Naples by Alenia's
Aeronavali unit. In March, Boeing received a firm contract for
the first of four 767 tankers for the Japanese Air Self-Defense
Force, to be delivered in 2007. Australia is expected to issue
a request for tenders this summer, and Korea, the United Arab
Emirates and Saudi Arabia are other early potential markets.
As for the USAF lease, the big prize "Under the best case,
we could be under contract at the end of June," Gower said
last month.
