Lockheed reveals LMXT tanker for Air Force’s KC-Y

Lockheed Martin today revealed it will bid the LMXT tanker for the Air Force’s forthcoming KC-Y bridge tanker competition.

The aircraft builds on the Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport refueler -- the company’s bid for the KC-X competition that Boeing’s KC-46 ultimately won. The A330 is currently operating in 13 countries and is certified to refuel a slew of Defense Department aircraft, including the F-35, F-22, F-16 and A-10.

The LMXT features improved range and fuel offload capability, an open systems architecture and a multidomain operations node meant to increase situational awareness and allow the tanker to connect to the “larger battlespace,” Lockheed said in a press release.

"Lockheed Martin has a long and successful track record of producing aircraft for the U.S. Air Force, and we understand the critical role tankers play in ensuring America's total mission success," Greg Ulmer, Lockheed’s executive vice president of aeronautics, said in the release. "The LMXT combines proven performance and operator-specific capabilities to meet the Air Force's refueling requirements in support of America's National Defense Strategy."

The company is expected to release more details on the aircraft next week during the Air Force Association’s annual Air, Space and Cyber conference.

The Air Force issued a request for information in July seeking industry input on non-developmental refueling capabilities that could supplement the current tanker fleet by the end of this decade. The bridge effort is meant to fill a projected gap between the end of KC-46 production and the development of a follow-on Advanced Aerial Refueler.

The service has said it expects to buy 140 to 160 non-developmental tankers.

Air Mobility Command is still crafting requirements for the bridge effort and expects to finalize them later this year. The service plans to release a request for proposals in 2022.