The U.S. Air Force’s Next Generation Aerial Refueling System (NGAS) is a planned future tanker family intended to improve operations in contested airspace. Public disclosures point to work on survivability, communications and autonomous refueling technology—but they do not identify a selected aircraft, prime contractor or guaranteed delivery date.
What NGAS is meant to solve
Air Force leaders have described NGAS as a future tanker family of systems, while the Congressional Research Service (CRS) characterizes it as a possible more-survivable tanker option for contested airspace. Tankers extend the reach and endurance of aircraft, but operating them near capable threats presents risks that a future force may need to address through survivability and better connectivity.
In April 2024 testimony, Air Force leadership said the concept could include adaptive and agile platforms and emissions systems. The analysis of alternatives was considering both clean-sheet and purpose-built designs to address projected threats and needed capabilities. These were planning statements, not a final aircraft specification. CRS identifies stealth, defensive systems and communications as examples of technologies under consideration, but the public material does not settle the design. Read the April 2024 House hearing transcript and CRS’s January 21, 2026 overview.
What the Air Force has said about timing and options
The timeline remains a planning horizon, not a fielding commitment. Air Force testimony in April 2024 referred to a tanker family by the mid-2030s. CRS reported in January 2026 that the Air Force had considered NGAS available by 2036. Neither statement guarantees when an aircraft will be delivered or operational.
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CRS describes three broad paths for meeting future tanker needs:
- Buy additional KC-46s: Continue procurement of the existing tanker type.
- Acquire a bridge tanker: Use an existing Boeing or Airbus design to address nearer-term needs.
- Develop NGAS: Pursue a more survivable tanker for contested environments.
These options differ in maturity and intended role, but the public sources do not provide a quantitative performance comparison among candidate designs. CRS also reported that the Air Force’s FY2026 budget request included $12.96 million for NGAS research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E). The requested funding was for continuing analysis of alternatives, planning for survivable connectivity and survivability, and market research; it is a dated budget request, not a final award or a statement of the program’s current budget.
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What Boeing disclosed about autonomous refueling
Boeing’s April 28, 2025 account describes its work under an Air Force Research Laboratory contract for the Combat Refueling and Operations Network User System (CRONUS). The effort includes Boom Automation for airborne refueling and Relative Navigation (RelNav) to help uncrewed receiver aircraft navigate a refueling rendezvous. Boeing described work spanning system-engineering design, simulation, laboratory demonstrations and proof-of-concept flight tests.
Boeing said the technology could support today’s tanker fleet and inform NGAS. Sean Liedman, then identified by the company as interim director of business development and strategy for Boeing Defense, Space & Security, said: “We’re in a position to integrate advanced technologies like these autonomous capabilities into today’s tanker fleet while also informing the future NGAS team of systems.” The statement describes potential relevance; CRONUS is not an NGAS aircraft selection, production contract or award to build a tanker. Boeing’s CRONUS account provides the company’s description of the effort.
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What Lockheed Martin disclosed—and what it does not establish
In a 2023 statement, Lockheed Martin said it was transitioning the LMXT team and resources to new opportunities and priority programs, including aerial-refueling solutions in support of the Air Force’s NGAS initiative. That establishes a stated business focus, not selection of Lockheed Martin as the NGAS prime contractor or approval of an LMXT-based design. Read Lockheed Martin’s KC-135 recapitalization update.
NGAS is not the KC-46 program or the Navy’s MQ-25
NGAS concerns the Air Force’s future tanker family and the question of how to provide refueling capability in more contested conditions. The KC-46 is part of the Air Force’s current tanker recapitalization, while the Navy’s MQ-25 is a separate program. Boeing’s CRONUS work may inform NGAS and other refueling applications, but that link does not make CRONUS an NGAS aircraft program or merge these distinct efforts.
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What remains undecided
The cited public material does not identify a final NGAS requirement, selected airframe, prime contractor, procurement path or confirmed fielding date. The 2024 testimony discussed a wide range of designs and contemplated full and open competition; CRS’s January 2026 account still described alternatives analysis and market research. Those records do not establish whether a later milestone has occurred, so they should not be treated as proof that the program has had no subsequent changes.
Nor do company statements or public concepts establish that every named tanker manufacturer is a current bidder. The defensible takeaway is narrower: Boeing has described autonomous-refueling technology work it says could inform NGAS, and Lockheed Martin has said it was pursuing NGAS-related opportunities. Neither disclosure demonstrates that the Air Force has chosen a winner.
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