Boeing 101: Axial Loading On The KC-46 Passes Milesstone C Test

Recently as in this month the KC-46 needed to pass a significant test point before the military can accept and announce the first Lots of KC-46 production for about 19 KC-46's. Boeing hit an Axial Load wall with its C-17 and F-16 tests Earlier this year. The military issued a no-go memorandum before accepting any KC-46 from Boeing. The term bantered about was Axial Loading as a big problem. Going to the internet was the first step in solving a blogging problem about Axial Loading.

As all studious patrons of knowledge, must have a quick course established on the internet for such a problem. Boeing engineers go to school for years studying Axial Loads and have come up with a mechanical solution to alleviate Axial Loading with its KC-46 Boom and fuel delivery system.

Axial Loading 101 Class summary:

"An Axial load is a force administered along the lines of an axis. Axial loading occurs when an object is loaded so that the force is normal to the axis that is fixed, as seen in the figure. Taking statics into consideration the force at the wall should be equal to the force that is applied to the part."

Word Problem: A boy who weighs 60 lbs is pulling a toy wagon having about 200 lbs of bricks stacked in the wagon. The boy comes to a crack in the sidewalk and the wagon stops. The boy must hang onto the wagon handle and pull the wagon through the sidewalk's cracked ridge. A garden hose is also strung through the handle under home water pressure coming from the house. Jerking the wagon over the crack could disconnect the garden hose that is running down inside the wagon's handle, and then cause a blow-out and a big mess for the load of bricks stopped at the sidewalk crack. The boy could not compensate for the change in his Axial Load grip on the wagon handle and the hose stretched and came disconnected. What was the change in force between the Boy, hose, and handle to the wagon causing the blow-out?

The question is run through the boy's tablet and an answer came back instructing him to adjust his grip and lever the wagon over the side-walk crack exerting enough force keeping the the boy to wagon connection stable and the hose connected.

 The A-10 Wart Hog has just successfully completed the Boom full load transfer validating The KC-46 for production.

The KC-46 is the boy and the C-17 is the wagon with a load of bricks. Boeing needed a computer monitoring the ever changing Axial Loads from turbulence and airspeed and then have a mechanical hydraulic input on its boom to stay connected. A drogue and hose line outboard on a wing is a situation normal condition while the A-10, F-16 and C-17 all have been tested on the boom as successful. Thus completing the fueling from the KC-46 and mastering axial loads with its software and hardware fixes. Milestone C is complete awaiting government approval for first production of nineteen KC-46.

Hose refueling without Axial Load Issues