Protecting Tankers & Lifters: Enhanced Missile Defense Capabilities Needed
High-value airborne assets—including KC-46 and KC-135 tankers, C-5 and C-17 cargo aircraft, and P-8 maritime patrol platforms—form the backbone of U.S. military power projection. Yet these critical enablers face a growing threat from advanced adversaries deploying long-range weaponry that’s reshaping contested airspace.
Traditionally, tankers and cargo aircraft operated in relative safety, far from engagement zones. But proliferation of sophisticated surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles by China and Russia is fundamentally changing the operational calculus. “We still need to perform aerial refueling and cargo transport missions,” explains Jared Belinsky, product line director of Integrated Survivability Solutions at BAE Systems. “But our tankers and cargo aircraft are going to be pushed farther away from their area of responsibility or they’re going to need protection—either electromagnetic or kinetic—to fly in contested spaces.”
The vulnerability stems from inherent platform characteristics. These large, relatively slow aircraft have significant electromagnetic signatures—they weren’t designed for low radar cross-sections. Their limited maneuverability restricts evasive options, and most derive from commercial designs decades old, predating any defensive consideration.
Adversaries now employ multimodal threats operating across multiple frequency bands with extended ranges. “Twenty years ago, industry would provide an antidote to a threat in a particular band,” notes Avetis Ioannisyan, program director of Strategic Air at BAE Systems. “Modern threats switch between different bands, making protection much more nuanced.”
Defense requires a layered approach combining multiple countermeasures. RF (radio frequency) countermeasures—installed onboard, as expendables, or towed decoys—address electromagnetic threats. Radar warning receivers detect incoming missiles. Chaff, flare dispensers, and kinetic defenses provide additional layers. Support aircraft like the EA-37B can provide wide-area electromagnetic protection.
Retrofitting legacy platforms presents significant challenges. The KC-135, for example, has a boom at its rear, making traditional decoy placement impossible. Wing stations aren’t available on tanker platforms without removing and modifying wings—an unacceptable downtime cost. Engineers must innovate within platform constraints.
“If we’re going to preserve freedom of maneuverability, we need layered multimodal defensive systems from multiple platforms and countermeasure types,” Belinsky concludes. For these critical assets to maintain operational effectiveness in contested environments, comprehensive integration of detection, protection, and coordinated defense across the battlespace is essential.
Source ID: SRCE-2025-1764954526233-1207