A KC-135 Stratotanker refuels an F-15E Strike Eagle over Afghanistan on Nov. 18, 2011. The KC-135 Stratotanker has provided the core aerial refueling capability for the United States Air Force for more than 50 years. The Stratotanker is deployed to the 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, from the Alabama Air National Guard’s 117th Air Refueling Wing. The Fighting Falcon is deployed from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Andrew Hardy)

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An aircrew member, from the 335th Fighter Squadron, monitors the delivery of fuel into his F-15E Strike Eagle from a KC-135 Stratotanker while flying over Afghanistan on Nov. 18, 2011. The Stratotanker is deployed to the 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron at Transit Center at the Manas, Kyrgyzstan, from the Alabama Air National Guard’s 117th Air Refueling Wing. The aircrew member and the Strike Eagle are both deployed from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Andrew Hardy)

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A KC-135 Stratotanker refuels an F-16 Fighting Falcon over Afghanistan on Nov. 18, 2011. The F-16 is a compact, multi-role fighter aircraft. It is highly maneuverable and is proven in air-to-air combat and air-to-surface attack. The Stratotanker is deployed to the 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, from the Alabama Air National Guard’s 117th Air Refueling Wing. The Fighting Falcon is deployed from the D.C. Air National Guard’s 113th Wing. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Andrew Hardy)

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A pair of F-16 Fighting Falcons approach a KC-135 Stratotanker for refueling over Afghanistan on Nov. 18, 2011. Since Sept. 11, 2001, the F-16 has been a major component of the combat forces committed to Operation Enduring Freedom. The Stratotanker is deployed to the 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, from the Alabama Air National Guard’s 117th Air Refueling Wing. The Fighting Falcon is deployed from the D.C. Air National Guard’s 113th Wing. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Andrew Hardy)

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An F-15E Strike Eagle approaches a KC-135 Stratotanker for refueling over Afghanistan on Nov. 18, 2011. An array of avionics and electronics systems gives the F-15E the capability to fight at low altitude, day or night, and in all weather, as well as the capability to fight its way to a target over long ranges, destroy enemy ground positions and fight its way out. The Stratotanker is deployed to the 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, from the Alabama Air National Guard’s 117th Air Refueling Wing. The Strike Eagle is deployed from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Andrew Hardy)

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A KC-135 Stratotanker detaches after refueling an F-15 Strike Eagle over Afghanistan on Nov. 18, 2011. International Security Assistance Force Commander, Gen. John Allen, witnessed the refueling during an orientation flight in the Strike Eagle. The Stratotanker is deployed to the 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, from the Alabama Air National Guard’s 117th Air Refueling Wing. The Strike Eagle is deployed from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Andrew Hardy)

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Photo essay: Air refueling over Afghanistan

Published Nov. 21, 2011
By Capt. Andrew Hardy
22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron

OVER AFGHANISTAN -- In support of Operation Enduring Freedom, a KC-135R Stratotanker flown by Airmen from the 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron refueled fighters over Afghanistan on Nov. 18, 2011.

The 22nd EARS is part of the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan.

According to Air Forces Central statics from the Combined Air Operations Center at a non-disclosed base in Southwest Asia, air refueling aircraft like the KC-135 have off-loaded more than 988 million pounds of fuel to more than 77,000 aircraft through Oct. 31 in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.

The KC-135 is the Air Force's oldest air refueling airframe, history shows, as it first became operational in the Air Force in the 1950s. The airframe continues to be used as a crucial air refueling platform for overseas contingency operations.