Four dozen Maine Wing members from four squadrons joined with the Maine Air National Guard’s 101st Air Refueling Wing for a new perspective on aviation June 18 — rides on two KC-135 Stratotanker aerial refueling flights.
“The KC-135 flight was outstanding,” Cadet Airman Ethan Lynn of the Sanford Composite Squadron said after the round-trip ride out of Pease Air National Guard Base in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. “It was an amazing experience that only a limited amount of people will ever be able to [have].
“I learned a lot on this flight. The boom operator taught most people going for a view of the refueling about the whole process.”
Capts. Carl Burnham and Joseph Bartol, Air National Guard pilots, and with their crews provided 48 members from the Auburn-Lewiston, 21st Brunswick, Portland and Sanford composite squadrons with the rare opportunity to view aerial refueling of military aircraft, including several F-15C fighter jets.
Cadet Staff Sgt. Yassine El Ghazouani of the Brunswick squadron pronounced the experience “exhilarating.”
“I learned from the flight that F-15s are still in service,” El Ghazouani said, “and that the arm that refuels aircraft is controlled by a single person.”
Known as “the MAINEiacs,” the 101st is one of the Air National Guard’s most decorated. Formed in 1947, the 101st has served across the globe in times of peace and conflict, with its first call to active service coming during the Korean War.
The KC-135 Stratotanker was first assigned to the 101st in 1976. The aircraft’s primary mission is aerial refueling, with the capability to refuel aircraft in flight via a boom arm and a maximum 200,000-pound fuel capacity that can be transferred at a rate of 1,000 gallons per minute._____2nd Lt. Amanda GoldmanAssistant Public Affairs OfficerMaine Wing
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