Iliana Maifeld-Carucci

Boeing Delivers KC-46A Tankers to Japan

  1. Space/Air Vehicle
  2. Article
    1. Technology: Boeing KC-46A Tanker
    2. Title: Japan becomes first non-American operator of KC-46A tanker
    3. Website: AirForce Times
    4. https://www.airforcetimes.com/industry/2021/11/01/japan-becomes-first-non-american-operator-of-kc-46a-tanker/
    5. Summary
      1. Boeing has delivered 1 of 4 KC-46A tankers to the Japan Air Self Defense Force
      2. This is the first delivery of US aviation military technology to a foreign country
      3. For this acquisition to happen, Japan needed to get approval from the U.S. State Department and it plays a critical role in the military alliance between Japan and the U.S.
  3. This news highlights the geopolitical forces at play in aviation and by extension, space. For this acquisition to happen Japan must have a lot of trust in the U.S. and vice-versa since this is military technology. For example, the U.S. could have adapted the tanker in some harmful way, and similarly likely, Japan now has access to an aircraft that the U.S. uses giving it an inside look to potential weaknesses.

    More traditionally, this acquisition may be vulnerable to insider threats who might attack the tanker itself to incapacitate it for Japanese use.
  4. The biggest risk is that the critical systems of the tanker would be affected by a cyber attack.