USAF tanker remote-vision system to continue tests for operability, safety
NewsJuly 08, 2019
McCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kansas. A team from the Air Force Research Laboratory?s 711th Human Performance Wing, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is scheduled to conduct tests for the KC-46A Pegasus refueling tanker's Remote Visual System (RVS) during July 2019.
Teams are continuously conducting RVS research to help resolve vision complications correlated with the KC-46. Boom operators from multiple installations involved with the KC-46’s introduction have been cooperating with studies that will help refine the RVS.
Dr. Steve Hadley, 711th HPW Operational Based Vision Assessment Laboratory lead, says that the system being researched allows boom operators to conduct aerial refueling with the use of a camera and 3-D technology; the tanker is intended for refueling in all conditions, including day, night, and covert. Hadley says that the research conducted at McConnell will help finalize some of the last critical factors and data needed for improvements.
Air Force officials say that the data collected for suggested visual enhancements on the system will also enhance the boom operators’ safety and ability to execute the KC-46 mission in multiple environments.
