On April 10, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) reported achieving a new milestone by having one of its C-17 Globemaster III aircraft refueled in-flight by a commercial Omega KDC-10B, expanding the range of aircraft that have received this type of support to complement the heavily tasked fleet of refueling aircraft operated by the service. According to official information, the event involved a training flight with personnel from the 62nd Operations Support Squadron and the 8th Airlift Squadron, both operating out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington State.
Major Ryan Vigil, who currently serves as the director of training for the 62nd Operations Support Squadron, commented: “The 62nd AW has limited access to in-flight refueling training, which can affect our pilots’ experience.” He further added: “The training [Note: with Omega’s aircraft] is very similar to what we experience with the KC-10 and the KC-46.”
It is worth highlighting that the use of Omega’s KDC-10B aircraft provides even more advanced capabilities than those observed in the aforementioned KC-10 and KC-46, considering that the KDC-10Bs are equipped with an advanced optical sensor refueling system that replaces the operator traditionally required to control the boom system. This is a significant detail, given that this system closely resembles the one installed on the KC-46 Pegasus aircraft, a key component of the USAF’s ongoing aerial refueling fleet modernization.
Briefly reviewing the known technical features of Omega’s KDC-10s, it should be noted that these aircraft can carry up to 160,000 kilograms of fuel for refueling missions, stored mainly in tanks located under the cargo floor and in the forward lower cargo compartment, as well as in the center wing section. Depending on mission requirements, the aircraft can also transport up to 75 passengers and about 77,000 kilograms of cargo over distances of up to 7,000 kilometers without refueling.
Building on the earlier reference to USAF aircraft receiving support from Omega platforms, it is also worth mentioning that in November 2023, the U.S. Air Force used one of the company’s KDC-10s to refuel its F-15, F-16, and F-22 fighters over the Pacific. Additionally, as we reported in April 2024, the Air Force also successfully refueled a B-52H Stratofortress bomber with an Omega KDC-10 during a flight from Osan Air Base (South Korea) to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam. These cases reflect the USAF’s intent to follow the path that other U.S. forces — namely the Navy and Marine Corps — have pursued for more than two decades by employing commercial aerial refueling platforms.
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