FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash.—For a barometer of the military’s unrelenting thirst for aerial refueling, look to the sprawling flight line here in the Inland Northwest. Fairchild is the home of the Air Force’s only “super” tanker wing, with four KC-135 squadrons. The fourth, the ...
MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., cleaned up limited flooding and debris after Hurricane Elsa passed through early July 6 and headed north into Georgia and South Carolina. After the storm passed the Gulf Coast base, MacDill said it moved to “recovery operations” for several hours ...
MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., closed its gates to non-mission-essential personnel and sent its KC-135s to Kansas as Tropical Storm Elsa approached Florida. MacDill moved to Hurricane Condition 2-Non-Evacuation the morning of July 6, expecting wind gusts of 60 mph, more than eight inches of ...
Air Force Magazine on May 25 flew aboard a KC-46 during a refueling flight as part of Air Mobility Command’s major exercise Mobility Guardian 2021 in Michigan, the first time an independent media outlet has flown on the new tanker. The KC-46 from McConnell Air ...
The Air Force is considering two bases for the next Active-duty KC-46 component and six bases for the next Pegasus Reserve unit, with a decision expected this fall. The service announced May 13 it is looking at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, and MacDill Air ...
Air Mobility Command is modifying palletized lavatory and galley systems to avoid possible “spillage” as KC-46s take off and land, after issues arose with the system during operations. The Air Transportable Galley-Lavatory is a palletized combination lavatory and galley that provides additional toilets, beverage production, ...
U.S. Transportation Command is looking too integrate the KC-46 into operations as soon as June, following Air Mobility Command’s move to free up the troubled tanker for ops to relieve stress on legacy refuelers. TRANSCOM boss Army Gen. Stephen R. Lyons recently visited KC-46 officials ...
Boeing has delayed the delivery of one KC-46 tanker to the New Hampshire Air National Guard because of an electrical problem on the airplane, though the company says it's a limited issue that will not broadly affect the schedule for the problem-ridden program. This particular ...
KC-135s and Airmen from MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., recently deployed to the Middle East to take over the in-theater refueling mission from McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., tankers that returned home. The entire 50th Air Refueling Squadron deployed to al-Udeid Air Base, Qatar, on ...
The Air Force’s newest tanker has tested one of its other key missions —aeromedical evacuation. On July 10, a KC-46 and Airmen from the 931st Air Refueling Squadron and the 22nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron flew six sorties during a 17-hour mission across four bases to ...
KC-135s and Airmen from the 349th Air Refueling Squadron at McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., lived in quarantine and dramatically changed their routine before heading to the Middle East earlier this month. The early April deployment to Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, is an example ...
The Air Force on Dec. 18 downgraded one of the top-level problems facing the KC-46 program, lifting a three-month ban that stopped the tanker from carrying personnel and cargo as Boeing began installing new cargo locks on the aircraft. The redesigned lock has been retrofitted ...