F-22s

Cool air-to-air refueling time lapse video shows four F-22 Raptors receiving fuel from a KC-135 Stratotanker in less than ten seconds

By Dario Leone
Sep 29 2016
Share this article

The KC-135 Stratotanker boom remains very effective when it comes to pass gas to the receiver aircraft.

Filmed during Rim of the Pacific 2016, the world’s largest international maritime exercise , the cool time lapse video in this post shows four U.S. F-22 Raptors from the 199th Fighter Squadron and the active duty 19th Fighter Squadron receiving fuel from a KC-135R Stratotanker belonging to the 465th Air Refueling Squadron from Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma.

Noteworthy the KC-135 refueling boom relies on hydraulic-mechanical infrastructure to perform its function, since it was developed by Boeing when it originally built the KC-135 fleet in the 1950s and early 1960s. Nevertheless the Stratotanker boom remains very effective when it comes to pass gas to the receiver aircraft. In fact even if the refueling boom of the more modern Boeing (former McDonnell Douglas) KC-10A Extender uses a fly-by-wire electronic control system, it’s able to pass 1,100 gallons of fuel per minute, a fuel transfer rate per minute which is not much greater than the 1,000 gallons per minute that the KC-135 boom can sustain.

Twenty-six nations, more than 40 ships and submarines, more than 200 aircraft, and 25,000 personnel took part in Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) from Jun. 30 to Aug. 4, in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California. RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain the cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2016 has been the 25th exercise in the series that began in 1971.

Photo credit: Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Gregory A. Harden II / U.S. Navy


Share this article

Dario Leone

Dario Leone

Dario Leone is an aviation, defense and military writer. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviation Geek Club” one of the world’s most read military aviation blogs. His writing has appeared in The National Interest and other news media. He has reported from Europe and flown Super Puma and Cougar helicopters with the Swiss Air Force.

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Share this article


Share this article
Share this article

Always up to date! News and offers delivered directly to you!

Get the best aviation news, stories and features from The Aviation Geek Club in our newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.



    Share this article
    Back to top
    My Agile Privacy
    This website uses technical and profiling cookies. Clicking on "Accept" authorises all profiling cookies. Clicking on "Refuse" or the X will refuse all profiling cookies. By clicking on "Customise" you can select which profiling cookies to activate. We and our selected ad partners can store and/or access information on your device, such as cookies, unique identifiers, browsing data. You can always choose the specific purposes related to profiling by accessing the advertising preferences panel, and you can always withdraw your consent at any time by clicking on "Manage consent" at the bottom of the page.

    List of some possible advertising permissions:

    You can consult: our list of advertising partners, the Cookie Policy and the Privacy Policy.
    Warning: some page functionalities could not work due to your privacy choices