KC-135's 50 years of service recognized

  • Published
Celebration activities for the KC-135 Stratotanker's 50 years of service culminated in a banquet Sept. 9 at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. 

More than 400 military and civilian guests, mostly past and present crewmen, maintainers, community leaders and elected officials, gathered to celebrate the historic event. 

Lt. Gen. Christopher A. Kelly, vice commander of Air Mobility Command at Scott Air Force Base, Ill., was the keynote speaker. The general, a command pilot with more than 3,900 flying hours, spoke of the challenges of air refueling. 

"Aviation, by its very nature, is inherently dangerous," he said. "Let's compound that now by saying we are going to take another airplane -- you name the size -- from a C-5 (Galaxy) down to an F-16 (Fighting Falcon) or anything in between, that has an air refueling receptacle.

"We are going to drive that second airplane at about 300 mph up behind another airplane that happens to have a boom device on it. We are going extend that boom out to approximately 25 feet, and we are going to ask these two airplanes to join together," General Kelly said. "Then through a small device, we are going to pump highly volatile kerosene fuel from one airplane to another.

"Does it sound remarkable? Does it sound miraculous? It is a miracle to me." 

When speaking of the men and women who serve in the military, General Kelly told the assembled crowd he was often asked where he found them.

"The real question," he said, "is how do we keep them? I think the answer to that lies in the heart of each and every one of those individuals. So, if you get the opportunity, ask them and you, too, will find out how remarkable they are." 

General Kelly expressed pride in the remarkable people who fly and maintain the KC-135 Stratotanker.

"They help us preserve our freedom, preserve those things we hold most dear and continue to build on the foundation our forefathers and those folks who have served this great nation to this very moment have built," he said. "And we all need to remember that, 'Nobody wins wars without tanker gas!'" 

(Courtesy of Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center Public Affairs)