Originally Posted by Excargodog

THIS^^^

It’s been NINE YEARS since Boeing got the KC-46 tanker contract which STARTED with an FAA certified airframe, all the tooling, and a workforce experienced in building it. The wing probe and drogue refueling stations are purchased from a Brit outfit that has already been supplying them. And yet it still has serious mission critical deficiencies including the inability to safely secure pallets, a refueling boom system that sort of sucks, and fuel tanks that leak - occasionally also yielding stray tools, rivets, and Big Mac wrappers.

So can they do a clean sheet design? Almost certainly. In a SINGLE decade? I wouldn’t put money on it.