The first USAF/McDonnell Douglas KC-10A Extender filling over southern California during an early test flight. Six of these advanced tanker/cargo DC-10 Series 30CF derivatives have been ordered by the USAF.

The first KC-10A Extender is seen in the photographs on these pages during its Qualification Operational Test and Evaluation at Yuma. It will shortly be entering a further phase in its evaluation programme, flying from Barksdale AFB, the designated base for the future USAF KC-10A fleet.