Podcasts about stratotankers

//The Wire//2300Z March 31, 2025////ROUTINE////BLUF: STRATEGIC BOMBER BUILDUP AT DEIGO GARCIA CONTINUES, USA-IRAN RHETORIC INCREASES. CHINA DELAYS BLACKROCK DEAL TO BUY PANAMA CANAL.// -----BEGIN TEARLINE------International Events-Panama: The recently announced sale of Panama Canal Ports has been blocked by the Chinese government at the eleventh hour. As announced a few weeks ago, the majority of port facilities pertaining to the Panama Canal were scheduled to be sold to a consortium ultimately owned by Blackrock. This deal has been halted/delayed by China at the last minute.AC: The general theory behind this sale was for a critical maritime asset like the Panama Canal to be under American control as announced by the White House several weeks ago. After this initial interest was expressed, the deal became not necessarily American government control over the Canal, but rather for an American company to own these port facilities. Ultimately, the Chinese government halting the deal complicates the situation somewhat, especially since the reasons for the allegedly-temporary halt are not entirely clear. In any case, this indicates that the White House is not out of the woods yet when it comes to developments in Panama.Middle East: American rhetoric regarding a potential war with Iran has continued to escalate, with President Trump stating that "if we don't make a deal, there will be bombing". This comes on the heels of contradictory statements by DNI Tulsi Gabbard, who stated on Thursday that the intelligence community "continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003". Regardless of this assessment, American war plans continue.Meanwhile, a major surge of American military logistical resources is underway throughout the region. Satellite imagery from this morning confirms the presence of at least 5x B2 Spirit bombers at the airfield on Diego Garcia, along with an assortment of the standard tanker aircraft.AC: At least two KC-135 Stratotankers were observed moving from Guam to Diego Garcia early last week, which is a rare logistical movement and indicative of efforts to pull resources from multiple Areas of Responsibility (AORs) to provide logistical support for whatever is planned. A handful of C-17 cargo planes also landed at Diego Garcia over the weekend, adding to the sharp increase in aviation traffic at the remote island over the past week. Substantially increased C-17 cargo flights into Al Udeid Airbase have continued over the past few days as well. An additional B2 Spirit (likely intended for deployment to the Indian Ocean with the others) was located in Honolulu, possibly due to maintenance reasons.-----END TEARLINE-----Analyst Comments:When a man threatens to bomb a foreign nation, and then begins staging large numbers of strategic bombers near that nation, one might be inclined to think that man is serious.At the risk of speculating too wildly, it's possible that the White House intends go to war with Iran in any case, regardless of any sort of agreement. This is a classic tactic in Middle East diplomacy...engage in peace talks then at the last second claim the other side violated some term of the agreement, and the war is on. Considering the extremely significant numbers of military logistics pouring into the region, this could be a possibility...offering the olive branch openly on one hand, to distract from readying the arrows with the other.Conversely, all of this could be a giant pile of nothing. This could be an undisclosed drill, or some kind of shell game with resources, or any other number of theories that point to some innocent shuffling of bombers. This could be more of a deterrent than a legitimate preparation for a large scale military campaign. However, if

Watch Off the Bench Presented by UDF with Chatterbox Sports Monday-Friday 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. LIVE on the Chatterbox Sports YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE to the channel to ensure you never miss a thing. Cincinnati Reds Opening Day, set for March 27, 2025, is more than just the start of a baseball season—it's a cherished tradition in a city that claims the title of baseball's birthplace. As the Reds take on the San Francisco Giants at Great American Ball Park at 4:10 p.m., Cincinnati will erupt in a celebration that blends sport, history, and community spirit. The Reds, the only MLB team granted the privilege of opening every season at home, turn this day into a local holiday, drawing fans downtown for a spectacle that's uniquely “Cincy.” The festivities kick off with the 106th Findlay Market Opening Day Parade at noon, a 1.4-mile procession from Over-the-Rhine featuring Reds legends like Grand Marshal Chris Sabo, alongside floats, bands, and Olympians. Pregame events include the Reds Community Fund Charity Block Party at The Banks at 11 a.m., offering music, food, and drinks, with proceeds supporting youth baseball and softball. At the ballpark, gates open at 2:10 p.m., with ceremonies at 3:30 p.m., featuring a giant flag, a flyover by KC-135 Stratotankers, and a first pitch from Sabo. On the field, the Reds, led by new manager Terry Francona, aim to capitalize on stars like Elly De La Cruz and Hunter Greene, who'll start the opener. After a 77-85 season in 2024, offseason moves—like adding pitcher Brady Singer and outfielder Austin Hays—signal playoff ambitions. Fans will receive a 2025 schedule sticker, and the game will air on FanDuel Sports Network. Opening Day embodies Cincinnati's deep baseball roots, from its first professional team in 1869 to today's vibrant rituals. It's a day of hope, renewal, and unity, where the crack of the bat echoes through a city ready to cheer its Reds toward October glory.

We talk with the Long Beach Airport Public Affairs Officer. In the news, watching racy movies on the inflight entertainment system, a fatal crash at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome in New York, the competition for the main operating base for a fleet of Boeing KC-46A Pegasus air refueling tankers, and the AeroSHARK film that reduces fuel burn. Guest Kate Kuykendall has been the Public Affairs Officer at the Long Beach Airport (LGB) for over five years. She previously worked for the National Park Service and the Peace Corps. Our Main(e) Man Micah and Brian Coleman recorded a conversation with Kate covering various topics, including the airport's history, noise complaints, the new plane spotting area on private leasehold, and Corporate tenants at the airport, such as JetZero. Also, community outreach programs and tours, sustainability, and leaded aviation fuel for piston-powered aircraft. The airport's annual Festival of Flight is scheduled for Oct 19, 2024. Aviation News Passengers on Qantas flight to Tokyo endure ‘super uncomfortable' experience as racy movie is played on every single screen The IFE system was broken and the crew had to make a movie selection that would be seen on every screen. They chose Daddio from 2023 starring Dakota Johnson and Sean Penn. One passenger said, “Qantas played an inappropriate movie to the whole plane, there was no way to turn it off.” Another said, “It featured graphic nudity and a lot of sexting – the kind where you could literally read the texts on screen without needing headphones.” Experienced Aviator and Master Plane Craftsman Dies in Crash During Saturday Aerodrome Airshow Brian Coughlin, 60, died in a crash during an Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome show. He was flying a replica of a World War I Fokker D-VIII that he had helped to rebuild. A preliminary look at the accident indicated an engine fire during the airshow. Coughlin was a volunteer, an experienced pilot, and a mechanic craftsman who rebuilt World War I aircraft as a hobby. Bangor Air Guard Base Competing for New Refueling Tankers A competition is underway for the main operating base for a $1.3 billion fleet of Boeing KC-46A Pegasus air refueling tankers. The Bangor Air National Guard Base is one of the seven remaining finalists. The KC-46A tankers would replace the Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers operated by the Maine Air National Guard's 101st Air Refueling Wing, also known as the MAINEiacs. DAF announces seven candidate locations for KC-46A Pegasus MOB 7 The Department of the Air Force has selected seven bases as candidate locations to host the KC-46A Pegasus Main Operating Base 7. The candidate locations are: Bangor Air National Guard Base, Maine Forbes Field Air National Guard Base (Topeka), Kan. Key Field Air National Guard Base (Meridian), Miss. McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base (Knoxville), Tenn. Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base, Ohio Scott Air Force Base, Ill. Sumpter Smith Air National Guard Base (Birmingham), Ala. Lufthansa Technik Upgrades LATAM's Boeing 777 Aircraft With Fuel-Saving AeroSHARK Film LATAM Airlines Group S.A. will become Lufthansa Technik AG's first external customer in the Americas to equip its Boeing 777s with AeroSHARK film. Lufthansa Technik calls AeroSHARK “a durable bionic film that successfully mimics the skin of sharks and optimizes the airflow, thus enabling significant fuel savings.” The film was developed in conjunction with BASF.  Lufthansa Cargo, SWISS, All Nippon Airways, and EVA Air have already adopted AeroSHARK, with promising results. Mentioned Northrop X-21 Operation Airdrop: Hurricane Helene Volunteer pilots are flying supplies to trapped Hurricane Helene victims Martin J. McNally – Part 1 Airways, Nov/Dec 2021, “Terror in the Air,” Clipper 93, September 6, 1970 Hosts this Episode Max Flight, our Main(e) Man Micah, David Vanderhoof, Rob Mark, and Max Trescott.

Watch the video version here: https://youtu.be/Icdc7xfvd04On this episode:

Welcome to the sixty-second episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast and I'm your host Mark Hasara, a former Air Force KC-135 pilot, flying all over the world passing gas! Recently I had a conversation with a colleague on how far the Air Force tanker community had come since Deseet Stomr and the old Strategic Air Command days of the Single Integrated Operations Plan, the nuclear war plan. I felt the tanker community during Desert Storm was not prepared for high-density, high-ops-tempo air refueling operations because it wasn't our primary focus. This episode lays out what I feel are the air refueling lessons learned during the Desert Storm air campaign.  This episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast is sponsored and financially supported by the book Tanker Pilot found on Amazon which can be purchased in hardback, softback (photos in black and white), Kindle, and Audible (extra file contains the color pictures). Wall Pilot, custom aviation art for the walls of your home, office, or hanger has many of the aircraft of Desert Storm available in four, six, and eight-foot-long graphics printed on vinyl you can peel off and stick to any flat surface. Wall Pilto also creates custom aircraft artwork at the website wallpilot.com  The 58th Tactical Fighter Squadron shot down the most Iraqi Air Force MiG and Mirage aircraft during the Desert Storm air campaign. This F-15C was flown by Captain Cesar "Rico" Rodriguez on his two MiG Kill missions. On the first night of the Desert Storm air campaign, my KC-135 crew refueled COORS 31-34 flight of F-4G Wild Weasels, commanded by Lt Col George "John Boy" Walton flying this F-4G tail number that night. The EF-111A Spark Vark jamming aircraft was part of the Iraqi Integrated Air Defense Network takedown flying with COORS 31 flight and their four F-4G Wild Weasels. This 335th Tac Fighter Squadron F-15E dropped a 2000 lbs GBU-10 laser-guided bomb on a hovering helicopter and is now the Chief's squadron flagship. Large groups of F-111F Aardvarks spread out through Iraqi using laser and tv guided weapons to destroy possible chemical weapons facilities armed like this F-111F from the 494th Tactical Fighter Squadron from the 48th Tactical Fighter Wing based at RAF Lakenheath England. The USS John F Kennedy airwing had two squadrons of Vought Corsair II attack aircraft loaded the first night with AGM-88 High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles or HARM like this VA-72 Blue Hawks A-7E.  The 17th Tac Fighter Squadron deployed in their F-16C Fighting Falcons to Al Minhad Air Base in the UAE flying thousands of missions during Desert Storm. Strategic Air Command and Pacific Air Forces deployed 211 KC-135 Stratotankers to the Gulf Region during Operation Desert Storm. This KC-135R Model flew with the 909th Air Refueling Squadron based in Okinawa Japan. Thanks for downloading this episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast! This and previous episodes of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast can be found on my website at markhasara.com.

Welcome to the sixty-second episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast and I'm your host Mark Hasara, a former Air Force KC-135 pilot, flying all over the world passing gas! Recently I had a conversation with a colleague on how far the Air Force tanker community had come since Deseet Stomr and the old Strategic Air Command days of the Single Integrated Operations Plan, the nuclear war plan. I felt the tanker community during Desert Storm was not prepared for high-density, high-ops-tempo air refueling operations because it wasn't our primary focus. This episode lays out what I feel are the air refueling lessons learned during the Desert Storm air campaign.  This episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast is sponsored and financially supported by the book Tanker Pilot found on Amazon which can be purchased in hardback, softback (photos in black and white), Kindle, and Audible (extra file contains the color pictures). Wall Pilot, custom aviation art for the walls of your home, office, or hanger has many of the aircraft of Desert Storm available in four, six, and eight-foot-long graphics printed on vinyl you can peel off and stick to any flat surface. Wall Pilto also creates custom aircraft artwork at the website wallpilot.com  The 58th Tactical Fighter Squadron shot down the most Iraqi Air Force MiG and Mirage aircraft during the Desert Storm air campaign. This F-15C was flown by Captain Cesar "Rico" Rodriguez on his two MiG Kill missions. On the first night of the Desert Storm air campaign, my KC-135 crew refueled COORS 31-34 flight of F-4G Wild Weasels, commanded by Lt Col George "John Boy" Walton flying this F-4G tail number that night. The EF-111A Spark Vark jamming aircraft was part of the Iraqi Integrated Air Defense Network takedown flying with COORS 31 flight and their four F-4G Wild Weasels. This 335th Tac Fighter Squadron F-15E dropped a 2000 lbs GBU-10 laser-guided bomb on a hovering helicopter and is now the Chief's squadron flagship. Large groups of F-111F Aardvarks spread out through Iraqi using laser and tv guided weapons to destroy possible chemical weapons facilities armed like this F-111F from the 494th Tactical Fighter Squadron from the 48th Tactical Fighter Wing based at RAF Lakenheath England. The USS John F Kennedy airwing had two squadrons of Vought Corsair II attack aircraft loaded the first night with AGM-88 High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles or HARM like this VA-72 Blue Hawks A-7E.  The 17th Tac Fighter Squadron deployed in their F-16C Fighting Falcons to Al Minhad Air Base in the UAE flying thousands of missions during Desert Storm. Strategic Air Command and Pacific Air Forces deployed 211 KC-135 Stratotankers to the Gulf Region during Operation Desert Storm. This KC-135R Model flew with the 909th Air Refueling Squadron based in Okinawa Japan. Thanks for downloading this episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast! This and previous episodes of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast can be found on my website at markhasara.com.

In this special episode of Veteran Voices, host Scott W. Luton sits down with two very special people: Troy Boozer & Bruce Gillen. Scott served with both of these Veterans during his time on active duty at McConnell AFB in Wichita, Kansas - aka the Air Capital of the World. All three were part of a Data Analysis team that supported both air and maintenance operations for squadrons of KC-135 Stratotankers. Upcoming Events & Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Subscribe to Veteran Voices and ALL Supply Chain Now Programming Here: https://supplychainnowradio.com/subscribe Leave a review for Supply Chain Now: https://ratethispodcast.com/supplychainnow Connect with Scott on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/scottwindonluton/ Supply Chain Now Ranked #3 Supply Chain YouTube Channel: https://tinyurl.com/yazfegov Learn more about Vets2Industry: https://vets2industry.com/ Learn more about Troy Boozer's ministry: https://www.h20live.org/welcome Check out Teesha Boozer's new book "I Am Hannah": https://tinyurl.com/y4ukw572 This episode was hosted by Scott Luton. For additional information, please visit our dedicated show page at: https://supplychainnow.com/veteran-voices-27.

Today's story: The 97th Air Refueling Squadron reactivated at Fairchild Air Force Base, WA, as the installation takes on more KC-135 Stratotankers.

Edward Taylor III, 49, of Pickerington is an Ohio Army National Guard veteran of the 1990-91 Gulf War and served during the 2003-11 Iraq War with the Ohio Air National Guard, for which he still serves as a chief master sergeant. A Canton native, Taylor graduated from McKinley Senior High School and attended the University of Akron and Grantham University. He has been in the Ohio Air National Guard since 1999. He was promoted to senior master sergeant in 2012 and to chief master sergeant in May. He enlisted with the idea of becoming a pilot. “(My) family didn’t have a huge background in the military, ... but I do remember specifically both my grandfathers and my father back in the time, during World War II, black men were stereotyped as having flat feet,” he said. “If you had flat feet, some recruiters did not allow you to get in.” Both his grandfathers wanted to serve but weren’t able to, he said. His father also wanted to enlist but didn’t, he said. “Both my brothers and I – all three of us served, (as did) a couple cousins. ... Not a huge military family, but definitely, it’s been a big part of the Taylor family.” Taylor said he admired the Tuskegee Airmen, African American military pilots who had fought during WWII. He said he had taken an African American studies class at Akron, and he learned about such notable African American military pioneers as Eugene Bullard, a pilot who had served in the French military during World War I because he wasn’t allowed to serve in the U.S. military. He knew of Benjamin O. Davis Jr., a West Point graduate and son of a brigadier general who became the first African American general in the U.S. Air Force. And he was well aware of Daniel “Chappie” James Jr., who became the first African American four-star general in 1975. “Once I became familiar with their names and their stories, (I) definitely became a huge fan of their careers and wanted to emulate them,” he said. He didn’t get his pilot license, but he said he found that he really enjoyed the maintenance side of aviation more. “I enjoyed thoroughly aircraft maintenance,” he said. “I still had the chance to fly, you know, on the aircraft ... which was still a wonderful thing – a huge treat, not something everybody can say that they do. ... Being an 18-, 19-year-old kid learning how to fix and maintain a $60 million aircraft is not something that everybody does every day.” He was an armament mechanic on Bell AH-1 Cobra helicopters during Gulf War operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in 1990 and 1991. Before shipping out, he said, “I really wasn’t worried because I didn’t know what to expect.” He was on duty with the Air National Guard, working in a hangar, the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. Even before the second plane hit the World Trade Center, Taylor said he and his fellow airmen knew it was a deliberate attack. They knew jet aircraft were equipped with a terrain-collision-avoidance system, which keeps aircraft clear of ground obstacles, and the crash could not have been by chance. “We all kind of stopped in our tracks” to watch the news coverage, he recalled, and one airman said, “That’s it. We’re going to war, boys.” Camaraderie is a necessity for military personnel during a deployment, he said. “We have to foster that camaraderie so that we can make it because we’re all human beings. ... I’ve seen young men get their ‘Dear John’ letters. I’ve seen young ladies who just gave birth two months prior and now they’re (deployed) for six months,” he said. Members of the military get very close, he said, and he knows he always will maintain contact with those he served beside. Taylor served overseas in Bahrain, Qatar, Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates and Turkey. In those countries, he saw happy reunions of the local population at airports and realized “they’re just the same as you and I. ... They’re still human beings with emotion. ... All they want to do is love their people and be left alone, similar to the way a lot of us are. ... We’re all just people.” He said he particularly enjoyed being a customer in small shops in Turkey, where the locals wanted to socialize with tea before getting down to business. But once they got to know you, they were ready to sell their goods, he said. Conversely, he said, Bahrain wasn’t as welcoming. “When the king or prince would fly on their jet, we had to go in the house ... go into the hangars or the buildings or whatever because he didn’t want to see us,” he said. Taylor described the Air National Guard as a peacetime organization that effectively accomplished a wartime mission, he said. In all of the guard’s missions, he said, the troops ultimately are serving their own communities. “Whatever our role is, we’re taking care of home,” he said. Taylor suggested veterans adjusting to civilian life “use the foundation of your military training and experience to look at a new challenge. ... Civilian life can be a new challenge.” “If you’re having a struggle, go find other folks who have been out for a while,” he said, like veterans in the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars. “Take the time to find your purpose in life.” Taylor was the avionics superintendent of the 121st Air Refueling Wing at the Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Columbus before being promoted to aircraft-maintenance-squadron branch chief. His team maintains avionics on Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers, aerial-refueling aircraft. Taylor said most of the aircraft are at least 50 years old and have to be retrofitted with modern technology. “It becomes real stressful when you think that the majority of the aircraft that we fly – the KC-135 – were developed in the ’50s and built in the late ’50s and early ’60s,” he said. “Think about having an aircraft that’s already 56 years old, putting 2019 technology inside of that and expecting it to fly a mission – and it does eloquently ... thanks to the young men and women that are able to train, maintain that aircraft on a daily basis.” Married and a father of four, his decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal Air Force Commendation Medal with one device, the Air Force Achievement Medal with two devices and a Meritorious Unit Award. State awards include the Ohio Commendation Medal with one device and the Ohio National Guard Special Service Ribbon. Taylor gave the keynote address for the Canal Winchester Veterans Day observance in November. This podcast was hosted and produced by Scott Hummel, ThisWeek Community News assistant managing editor, digital. This profile was written by Paul Comstock and Hummel.

Today's story: KC 135 Stratotankers deployed to Amari Air Base, Estonia from Royal Air Force Mildenhall as part of a weeklong mission assurance exercise.

Jerry Vance of Hilliard is a 75-year-old Vietnam War veteran who served two tours in Thailand as a U.S. Air Force pilot. The first in 1968-69 was part of a 60-day temporary-duty assignment with the Young Tigers aerial refueling wing stationed in U-Tapao, about 87 miles southeast of Bangkok near the Gulf of Thailand. As a Young Tiger, Vance flew Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers, which were responsible for refueling the U.S. military’s tactical fighter aircraft in midair, usually after the fighter’s aircraft strike on a target and while en route back to the base. “It was really a busy, rewarding job to give them what they needed to get their mission done,” he said. Vance pointed out that each aircraft has to be refueled at a different speed. For example, he said, a Republic F-105 Thunderchief supersonic fighter-bomber has to be refueled at a faster speed than a North American F-100 Super Sabre supersonic jet fighter. “We were in orbit most of the time in Thailand just to keep our positions, and they would come and find us,” he said. The fighter always comes up from behind, he said. Even if a Boeing B-52 Stratofortress subsonic strategic bomber were approaching from the front, the B-52 would fly overhead and return to the rear of the KC-135 refueler, he said. Vance also said it was never just one aircraft being fueled per flight. “It was a minimum two, sometimes four you’re refueling,” he said. “So they just took turns.” The biggest challenges – or “most exciting times,” as Vance describes it – were in inclement-weather conditions. Vance returned to the United States for a few years, learning how to fly Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopters – commonly known as Hueys – while in Little Rock, Arkansas. His second tour in Thailand was in 1973-74, this time in Nakhon Phanom, just west of the Makong River in eastern Thailand. As part of the 21st Special Operations Squadron stationed at the Royal Thai Air Force Base, Vance was flying Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopters. The transition from southern Thailand to the United States and back to eastern Thailand wasn’t so difficult, he said. “The big shock is switching over from a fixed-wing airplane to a rotary-wing airplane,” he said. The mission there, he said, was to take people and supplies into “places Nixon said we never flew.” “We would take anywhere from five to 50 people in the back of our helicopter; we would take them out in the middle of nowhere; we would put them on the ground,” he said. “We’d leave them there one, two, three days, depending on what the mission was, and then we’d come back and pick them up – always in a different spot.” After the war, Vance remained in the Air Force until 1987 and spent time at the Hickam Air Force Base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, helping to recover space capsules. He later moved to the Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico, training pilots to fly Sikorsky HH-53 "Super Jolly Green Giant" helicopters. Vance’s decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal with three clusters, the Air Medal with Silver Oak Leaf Cluster, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Air Force Achievement Medal, the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, the National Defense Medal, the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with device and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal. Vance was born in Pensacola, Florida, and moved to Pickaway County, Ohio, when he was 4. He graduated from Darby Township High School (now Westfall) and attended Ohio State University and the University of Southern California, earning his bachelor’s degree at Ohio State and master’s degree at USC. Vance joined Ohio State’s ROTC pilot-training program. He and his wife, Connie, have two sons, Jeff (Lora) and David (Rebekah); a grandson, Jarod; two granddaughters, Emily and Sara Rowe; and two great-granddaughters, Lilly and Delilah. This podcast was produced by Scott Hummel, ThisWeek assistant managing editor, digital.