Aviation News, July 9, 2025 – Off the U.S. East Coast — A U.S. Air Force Boeing KC-46A Pegasus tanker experienced a mid-air boom separation on July 8 during a training mission while refueling a group of F-22 Raptors. The incident occurred off the coast of Virginia and is the second confirmed case of a boom detachment involving the KC-46A platform, compounding ongoing concerns over the aircraft’s reliability.
Operating under the callsign FELL 81, the tanker belonged to the 22nd Air Refueling Wing based at McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas. According to reports, the boom became detached during contact with one of the receiving F-22s. The crew promptly declared an in-flight emergency and requested a diversion to an alternate airfield.
Following the separation, the F-22 fighters safely returned to Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia. The KC-46 proceeded to Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina, where it landed without further incident. No injuries were reported, and the receiving aircraft did not sustain any known damage.
This is the second documented case of an in-flight boom detachment for the KC-46. A similar incident occurred in August 2024 during a refueling operation with F-15E Strike Eagles over California. While neither incident resulted in casualties, both have intensified scrutiny of the aircraft’s boom system—particularly its structural performance under the stresses of refueling agile, high-performance fighter jets.
The KC-46A, developed by Boeing, has faced multiple technical and operational challenges since its introduction, including issues with the Remote Vision System (RVS), fuel leaks, and boom design flaws. The Air Force has not yet released an official statement regarding the cause of the latest incident.
Photo Rob Vogelaar
