KC-46 passed EMP testing....or did it

Boeing and the Air Force announced in July that the KC-46 had passed EMP testing at Pax River, and showed that the aircraft could operate in the 6dB range, as required by the contract. It was lauded as a major milestone by both the program office and Boeing.

Now a report by the Director of Testing & Evaluation is raising questions about that certification. According to the report, some aircraft systems were unplugged prior to testing, and the boom was deployed beforehand, with the hydraulics shut off, and failed to show they could transfer fuel before, during, and after the pulse.

Both Boeing and the Air Force say the unplugged systems were non critical systems, and the aircraft meets all required standards.

www.businessinsider.com...

Like having a Maths test and having the answers before hand..

a reply to: Zaphod58

Wouldn't an EMP affect all electrical systems, whether they are plugged in or not, at least in theory? And also wouldn't there be at least a few seconds warning before an EMP?

a reply to: kelbtalfenek

No. If there's no power, and it's unplugged, it would have to be a strong hit to affect it.

All they have to do is just leave those non-critical systems unplugged, fly around with the boom deployed all the time, keep the hydraulics shut off and refrain from transferring fuel.

No worries.

So effectively it's designed to RTB in the event of EMP, but not fight during EMP?

a reply to: C0bzz

More or less.

a reply to: Majic

Right! They're non-critical anyway, so they obviously don't NEED them. And hell if the Wright Brothers could fly without hydraulics they don't need them either.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
Both Boeing and the Air Force say the unplugged systems were non critical systems, and the aircraft meets all required standards.

Sounds to me like the required standards were inadequate.

a reply to: face23785

Not to mention that after they signed the contract, they increased the requirement for tankers to 20dB, but said the contract only required 6, so they tested to 6.

Both Boeing and the Air Force say the unplugged systems were non critical systems, and the aircraft meets all required standards.

This is such bull#. Consider the analogous case where you're testing the security of a computer network:

Let's say before you even start, you take a bunch of things off the network, including the smart coffeemaker. After all, the smart coffeemaker isn't a critical system, and it's not *really* the thing being tested here, right?

Except in real life, that smart coffeemaker would be the first thing an attacker would exploit. It doesn't matter if it's not a "fair" target and not part of the game, and that's precisely what makes it such a vulnerability in the first place, that we don't notice or care or consider it in the context of computer network security. Yes, there are a lot of "non-critical" systems that we can leave out of our attacks, but it is those systems, and the chaos that we create around ourselves, that create vulnerabilities.

Systems in real life are complex and nonlinear creatures...

a reply to: wirehead

Of course it is. But they had to have SOME way to justify their game playing.

originally posted by: Majic
All they have to do is just leave those non-critical systems unplugged, fly around with the boom deployed all the time, keep the hydraulics shut off and refrain from transferring fuel.

No worries.

See Exhibit A. for operational analogical reference :

Ex. A.