The 18th Wing at Kadena AB, Japan, on the island of Okinawa has sent one of its KC-135s and crews to Hickam AFB, Hawaii, where they are training to refuel the new C-17 airlifter. TSgt. Chris Vadnais reports that the Kadena tanker aircrews rarely get to work with cargo aircraft and instead refuel mainly fighters. The difference? According to Capt. Mike Rossi, a Kadena pilot, the greater weight turbulence from the C-17 “pushes us around a little bit more from the back, so we have to take into account for that and just be prepared for any type of breakaway-type situations.”
PHOTOS: 12 B-2s Conduct Massive Fly-Off, Elephant Walk
April 19, 2024
The Air Force carried out the largest B-2 Spirit fly-offs in recent history, when 12 aircraft—the majority of the nation's stealth bombers—took off one by one on April 15 from Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo. The event also created a massive elephant walk as the aircraft taxied to and took…