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C-17s on other end of refueling mission

  • Published
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --   Normally, strategic tanker aircraft are responsible for refueling missions. But, when a snow storm stranded more than 100 fuel trucks inbound to bases in the U.S. Central Command Theater of Operations, it was the C-17 Globemaster IIIs from Air Mobility Command that came to the rescue.

In less than one week, eight Globemaster IIIs moved more than 300,000 pounds, roughly 47,000 gallons, of extra jet fuel into Afghanistan, replenishing the dangerously low levels of fuel needed to support air operations in the theater.

According to Col. Robert Bruley, Tanker Airlift Control Center director of operations, Brig. Gen. Chuck Collier, USCENTCOM Director of Mobility Forces, contacted TACC during the first week of February saying Bagram and Kandahar air bases in Afghanistan would have no fuel for AMC or theater aircraft due to a fuel shortage caused by a snow storm in the nearby mountains.

TACC officials responded immediately by calling on past experiences.

Weve used aircraft to deliver fuel before in a similar situation when we set up Bagram and Kandahar at the beginning of the conflict, said Col. William Marshall, the senior TACC controller. There was no fuel there initially, so we tanker'd it in. Unlike the initial set up, we didnt have to off-load the fuel into fuel bladders this time. Instead, the fuel was off loaded into fuel trucks.

Using aircraft, in particular the C-17, to support fuel resupply requirements isnt something controllers do on a routine basis, nor is it a preferred method.

The idea to use the C-17 was very unusual and rarely done, said Colonel Marshall. We looked at KC-135s and KC-10s, but none were available. All were engaged in other missions.

Even though the tanker aircraft were involved in other mission operations, TACC officials still didnt have to generate new C-17 missions or bump existing missions in order to meet the DIRMOBFORs request.

We used the already scheduled C-17 contingency channel missions, air refueled them en route with extra fuel for off-load in the area of responsibility, then refueled on their way out, said the colonel.

The average fuel capacity for the Globemaster III is between 170,000 pounds and 240,000 pounds. During the four days of refueling, eight C-17s ferried in 313,000 pounds of extra fuel. Of significance to this mission tasking is that none of the aircraft had to carry less cargo in order to handle the extra fuel.

We air-refueled to either the landing weight capacity of the C-17 or the capacity of the tanker to off load fuel. This ended up between 20,000 and 70,000 pounds of extra fuel per aircraft, said Colonel Marshall.

While the C-17s and their crew got the job done, utilizing the aircraft to resupply an air base with fuel isnt an option the TACC controllers will look to very often.

The inefficiencies are too great, said Colonel Bruley. Aircraft are heavier, more stops are involved in the round trip to and from Germany, and the crew day is at the maximum for the flight crews. Officials said tanker fuel trucks will continue to be the preferred method of resupplying an air base with required fuel.

Air Mobility Command News Service is a service of the Internal Division
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