Northrop Grumman KC-45
| Northrop Grumman KC-45 | |
|---|---|
| Type: | Tanker aircraft |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| Number of pieces: |
0 (concept) |
The Northrop Grumman KC-45 was an unrealized concept for a tanker aircraft that was designed on the basis of the Airbus A330-200 MRTT for the "US Air Force Aerial Refueling Tanker Program". In February 2008, the KC-45 first won the tender for a new tanker aircraft and thus prevailed against the Boeing KC-767 . In the summer of 2008, the appointment was stopped due to procedural errors and put out to tender again. In March 2010, Northrop Grumman withdrew from the new process because it was disadvantaged compared to its competitor Boeing . EADS then offered the US Air Force the KC-45 single-handedly, but was defeated by the Boeing KC-46 in February 2011 .
history
The A330-200 MRTT variant, specially tailored to the US market, initially ran under the designation KC-30, as in Australia. With the US company Northrop Grumman as project partner, EADS applied with the KC-30 for a major order from the United States Air Force for an initial 179 tanker aircraft to replace the aging Boeing KC-135 fleet ( KC-X resp. KC-45A program ). The tank configuration consists of the boom system on the rear of the fuselage and the probe-funnel system under the wings. The US Air Force can refuel its own aircraft with the boom system and the aircraft of the Navy , Marine Corps and their partners with the probe-drogue system. The price for an initial shipment of 68 tanker planes was expected to be $ 184 million per plane.
Boeing , on the other hand, competed with the KC-767 . After a selection process that lasted several years, the US Air Force announced on February 29, 2008 that it had selected the KC-30, which from then on bore the designation KC-45A in the Air Force . The first contract initially comprised four test aircraft that should fly from 2010. Delivery of the series aircraft was planned for 2013. The direct contract partner of the US Air Force was Northrop Grumman , which was to receive A330-200 structural parts from EADS, which were to be assembled in the USA and provided with the necessary tanker equipment. To this end, Northrop Grumman wanted to work with EADS North America to build a new plant at Mobile Downtown Airport in Mobile (Alabama) , which would also be used for the final assembly of civil A330 freighters. It was planned to use the synergy effects of the joint production site in Mobile, as the US Air Force would also like to use a large cargo door and a pallet rolling system, such as the A330F brings, for its version of the A330 multi-purpose tanker.
Boeing lodged a protest against the award decision on March 11, 2008 at the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) , which it upheld on June 18 due to award errors. The GAO therefore recommended restarting the bidding process with the two previous bidders. The order was then suspended and a new invitation to tender with changed requirements was decided. EADS and Northrop Grumman criticized this decision as a protectionist measure and claimed that it would only give the defeated Boeing Group the opportunity to hold this billion-dollar contract exclusively in the American domestic market.
In early December 2009, the President of Northrop Grumman announced that his company's consortium and EADS would exit the bidding process if the requirements in the tender remained unchanged. On March 8, 2010, Northrop Grumman stated that they would not submit a new offer for the "US Air Force Aerial Refueling Tanker Program" because the methodology of the new tendering process preferred the offer of the competitor Boeing. EADS then initially decided not to take part in the selection process either. On April 20, 2010, however, EADS announced that in the event of a possible extension of the deadline granted by the Pentagon, it would participate in the tender without the previous consortium partner Northrop Grumman.
On February 24, 2011, the US Department of Defense announced that Boeing had emerged as the winner in the renewed tender. The reason given by the US Air Forces was that the Boeing KC-46 (originally known as the KC-767 Next Gen Tanker) would have a lower acquisition cost than the KC-45.
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| Crew: | 3 |
| Length: | 58.78 m |
| Span: | 60.28 m |
| Height: | 17.40 m |
| Wing area: | 361.6 m² |
| Empty weight: | 120,500 kg |
| Maximum take-off weight: | 230,000 kg |
| Maximum fuel capacity: | 111,000 kg |
| Engines: | two turbofan engines General Electric CF6 -80E1A4B with 316 kN thrust each |
| Top speed: | 880 km / h |
| Marching speed: | 860 km / h |
| Range: | 12,500 km |
| Service ceiling: | 12,500 m |
See also
Web links
- Northrop-Grumman page on the KC-30 ( Memento from August 10, 2006 in the Internet Archive )
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Statement From Northrop Grumman on US Air Force Aerial Refueling Tanker Program. Northrop Grumman, March 9, 2010, accessed August 13, 2012 .
- ↑ GAO Sustains Boeing Bid Protest. (PDF; 51 kB) United States Government Accountability Office, June 18, 2008, accessed on August 13, 2012 .
- ^ Northrop threatens to boycott US tanker contest. Reuters, December 1, 2009, accessed August 13, 2012 .
- ↑ No Solo KC-X Bid for EADS. (No longer available online.) AviationWeek, March 9, 2010, formerly in the original ; accessed on August 13, 2012 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b USAF selects Boeing for KC-X contract. Flightglobal, February 24, 2011, accessed August 13, 2012 .
