Boeing has been awarded a $45 million U.S. Air Force contract to develop, produce and sustain a KC-46 Pegasus maintenance training system.

The company will provide an integrated contractor-operated and contractor-supported system for all KC-46 maintenance training.

That training system will include interactive multimedia instruction, virtual maintenance training classroom facilities and several types of hardware training devices, such as landing gear trainers and boom operator trainers.

The system aims to minimize on-aircraft maintenance training.

Work will be performed at McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas and is expected to be completed by February 2019.

The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center is the contracting authority.

Manufactured by Boeing, the Pegasus is a wide body, mutli-role tanker that can aerially refuel all U.S. and allied military aircraft compatible with international aerial refueling procedures.

The KC-46 can carry passengers, cargo and patients.

It can also detect, avoid, defeat and survive threats using multiple layers of protection that enable it to operate safely in medium-threat environs.