The Uncertified Origins of the KC-46 Tanker

In a stunning revelation, it has come to light that the KC-46 Pegasus, America’s new military refueling tanker, was born from an uncertified system at Boeing. Between 2002 and 2024, Boeing’s commercial aircraft line, including the 767 upon which the KC-46 is based, was not certified to the aerospace industry’s gold standard for quality management, the AS9100 standard.

This means that the very foundation of the KC-46 was built upon an uncertified process, with components and assemblies passing through the same uncontrolled environment as commercial airliners. As Daryl Guberman, CEO of Gooberman PMC LLC and a Boeing shareholder, explains, “The moment those military systems, the avionics, communication suites, the classified payloads were added to an aircraft born in an uncertified system, the contamination was complete.”

This “co-mingling” of certified and uncertified processes is a recipe for disaster in the aerospace industry. It’s akin to a doctor using a sterilized scalpel in an unsterile room – the scalpel is no longer sterile, and the procedure is compromised. In the case of the KC-46, the contamination runs deep, with every bolt, wire harness, and inspection report tied to these aircraft now suspect.