// UNMANNED SYSTEMS AND NEXT-GEN WARFARE TERM
Tanker
A tanker is a specialized aircraft used to refuel other planes while they are in the air. This process, called aerial refueling, allows fighters, bombers, and other aircraft to stay airborne much longer and travel greater distances without needing to land.
TECHNICAL DEFINITION
A tanker, or aerial refueling aircraft, is a military airframe equipped with systems like a flying boom or a hose-and-drogue to transfer fuel to a receiver aircraft mid-flight. This capability, known as air-to-air refueling (AAR), is a critical component of air power, extending the range, endurance, and operational persistence of combat and support aircraft for strategic force projection.
BACKGROUND
The military budget of the United States is the largest portion of the discretionary federal budget allocated to the Department of Defense (DoD), or more broadly, the portion of the budget that goes to any military-related expenditures. It pays the salaries, training, and health care of uniformed and civilian personnel, maintains arms, equipment and facilities, funds operations, and develops and buys new items. The budget funds the six branches of the US military: the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Air Force, and Space Force. Critics contend that recent U.S. defense budgets have disproportionately invested in long-term developmental programs instead of producing weapons systems needed in the near term.
READ MORE ON WIKIPEDIASYNONYMS & ALIASES
- aerial refueling aircraft
- air-to-air refueler
- refueler
- air tanker
- flying gas station
- AAR aircraft
- KC aircraft
USAGE NOTE
The term 'tanker' almost always refers to an aircraft that refuels other aircraft in-flight, not one that transports fuel on the ground.
DEVELOPERS
Organizations developing technology related to Tanker.
A major division of The Boeing Company responsible for defense and aerospace products. It manufactures the KC-46 Pegasus aerial refueling tanker for the U.S. Air Force and other international customers, and previously produced the long-serving KC-135 Stratotanker.
A division of Airbus responsible for defense and aerospace products. They develop and produce the A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT), a versatile aircraft used for aerial refueling and strategic transport by numerous air forces worldwide.
A global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technologies company. Lockheed Martin produces the KC-130J Super Hercules, a tactical tanker variant of the C-130, and is promoting its LMXT strategic tanker, based on the Airbus A330 MRTT, for the U.S. Air Force.
Israel's major aerospace and aviation manufacturer. IAI's Bedek Aviation Group specializes in converting commercial aircraft, such as the Boeing 767, into Multi-Mission Tanker Transport (MMTT) aircraft for military customers.
The defense division of the Brazilian aerospace conglomerate Embraer. It produces the C-390 Millennium multi-mission aircraft, which has an aerial refueling variant known as the KC-390, designed for tactical transport and tanking missions.
A power management company with a significant aerospace division. Following its acquisition of Cobham Mission Systems, Eaton is a leading designer and manufacturer of critical air-to-air refueling systems, including hoses, drogues, refueling pods, and fuel system components used on many tanker aircraft.
A leading manufacturer of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and radar systems. GA-ASI is developing autonomous refueling capabilities and has demonstrated aerial refueling pods for its drones, exploring the potential for unmanned platforms to serve as tankers.