KC-10s for KC-46s?

The Air Force may have to make a vertical cut and lose the KC-10 fleet in order to pay for the KC-46, Air Mobility Command chief Gen. Paul Selva told reporters at AFA’s 2013 Air and Space Conference in National Harbor, Md. AMC needs to reap savings early in case of a continued budget sequester, and a vertical cut may be the answer, though it is one of many options on the table, said Selva during the Sept. 17 press briefing. The KC-10’s retirement may be “how we make the investment dollars available to keep the KC-46 moving on its current schedule. And we intend to do that,” he said. The requirement for a 479-aircraft tanker fleet is not at issue, and “you could envision an option where, as the KC-46 delivers, the KC-10 retires,” he said. If done properly, such an approach could solve the money situation, he said. Selva wouldn’t divulge Fiscal 2015 budget numbers.