Photo By 1st Lt. Mary Begy | Members of the 507th Air Refueling Wing, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, participates...... read more read more
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TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla—A KC-135R assigned to the 465th Air Refueling Squadron here performed a flyover of the Texas Tech football game November 12th, 2022, in honor of veteran’s Day weekend, in Lubbock, Texas while the Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown was in attendance.
The Okies were joined by a C-130J from the 136th Airlift Wing, Texas Air National Guard, and the Air Force Academy’s Wing of Blue Demonstration Team.
“We volunteered for the flyover not only for the 50,000 fans but so the world knows we can deliver airpower on time and at a moment’s notice,” said Lt. Col. Douglas Jeffrey, 507th Operations Group commander. “The incredible team in our current operations shop was able to coordinate the whole operation with minimal turnaround time.”
Flyovers require very precise timing and safety precautions. Even a few seconds difference can throw off the timing of the whole operation.
“Flyovers can be very high pressure, not only for the crew flying but for the ground controller,” Jeffrey said. “Lt. Col. Stan Socha from the 730th Air Mobility Training Squadron did an amazing job making sure all the aircraft arrived on target and on time.”
Flyovers also require effort and coordination from the maintenance personnel that take care of the jets on a day-to-day basis. Staff Sgt. Thomas Langdon and Senior Airman Charles Jarecke, 507th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron crew chiefs, worked to make sure the aircraft was fully operational for the aircrew.
“Every mission is a joint effort between operations and maintenance,” Jeffrey said. “We would not be able to do what we do without our maintainers keeping us safe and the fleet healthy.”
In addition to Jeffrey, the aircrew consisted of 1st Lts. Benjamin Pryor and Kacy Christiansen, both 465th ARS pilots, and Tech. Sgt. Michael Wallace, 465th ARS boom operator. The KC-135 arrived on time as fireworks exploded over the stadium.
“It is always satisfying and puts a smile on our faces when these things work out perfectly,” said Christiansen. “We love making the fans cheer and showing off our mission.”
Gen. Brown saluted the crew for a job well done.
| Date Taken: | 12.02.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 12.02.2022 13:05 |
| Story ID: | 434386 |
| Location: | TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 59 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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