KC-46A Pegasus hangar construction underway

by Airman 1st Class Christopher Thornbury
22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

3/3/2015 - MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan.  -- The construction of three new hangars is underway, preparing for the arrival of the KC-46A Pegasus, here.

The hangars will have the capability of storing of six KC-46As for the 22nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron and the 931st Air Refueling Group to perform routine maintenance.

"We laid a new foundation system to support the new buildings and then foundation walls on top of those footings," said Neal Ridgeway, senior project manager. "Now we are in the process of running underground utilities, electric lines and sanitary lines."

Construction workers are working six days a week pouring concrete, welding and raising steel. The steel beams are scheduled to be raised within the next week and will hold the roof on Hangar 1126.

"Hangar 1124 is the most critical because it will have one side dedicated to repair fuel systems and one side for corrosion control, taking care of paint and repairing all of the surfaces on the new aircraft," said Ridgeway.

It is a big project to complete considering the size and the features the buildings will offer.

"The hangars being built are a lot larger than the previous hangars were to accommodate the larger aircraft," said Master Sgt. Danny Rutland, KC-46A Program Integration Office maintenance representative. "The major difference is that these hangars have a corrosion facility being built that will have the capability to paint a full aircraft. We have never had that capability here at McConnell before."

Hangar 1124 and 1125 are scheduled for completion by the end of the year, followed by the arrival of the first KC-46s in 2016. Hangar 1126 is slated to be finished in 2017.

"We were all given a mission to get these hangars built and everyone is working toward getting that done," said Ridgeway. "You couldn't get buildings of this size done in time without the cooperation of all the people involved. We are very lucky to have a good diverse team, a team with a lot of experience with these types of structures. We call on that experience every day."

McConnell Air Force Base is the first main operating base for the KC-46A with the first aircraft scheduled to arrive in fiscal year 2016. The new tankers will offer greater refueling capacity, increased capabilities for cargo and aeromedical evacuation and will provide aerial refueling support to the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps as well as allied nation coalition force aircraft.