Last Boeing test tanker completes maiden flight

The fourth and final Boeing KC-46 test tanker has completed its first flight, Boeing said on Tuesday.

McConnell Air Force Base in southeast Wichita will be the first base to receive the new air refueling tanker, which replaces the KC-135.

The 767-2C flew for one hour and 41 minutes on Monday and reached an altitude of 39,000 feet, Boeing said in a news release.

Boeing said this test aircraft does not include an air refueling system. Rather, it will test the KC-46 Pegasus’ environmental control system and smoke penetration.

Its first KC-46 test airplane accumulated more than 315 flight test hours since its first flight in December 2014.

Boeing expects to begin deliveries of the airplane to the Air Force in 2017.

The airplane is based off Boeing’s widebody 767 commercial airliner. Spirit AeroSystems in Wichita manufactures the forward fuselage of the airplane and other parts.

This story was originally published April 26, 2016 at 12:58 PM with the headline "Last Boeing test tanker completes maiden flight."