Tampa native deploys, helps bring fuel to fight

Photo By Senior Master Sgt. Greg Biondo | U.S. Air Force Maj. Neil Poppe, a KC-10 Extender pilot and Tech. Sgt. David Bailey, a KC-10 Extender flight engineer with the 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron, board their aircraft at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, Feb. 26, 2012. The 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron provides critical air refueling to aircraft in the area of responsibility, delivering more than one million gallons of fuel to the fight every day. In 2011, the 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron offloaded more than 390 million pounds of fuel to more than 28,000 aircraft, flew more than 36,700 hours in almost 4,600 missions. The average sortie length for a KC-10 mission in Southwest Asia was about eight hours.  

(UNDISCLOSED LOCATION)

02.26.2012

Story by Staff Sgt. Sara Keller 

United States Air Forces Central     

SOUTHWEST ASIA – Tech. Sgt. David Bailey, KC-10 Extender flight engineer with the 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron, recently deployed from the 2nd Air Refueling Squadron, Joint Base Dix-McGuire-Lakehurst, N.J.

As a flight engineer with the 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron, it is Bailey’s responsibility to calculate aircraft take off and landing data, malfunction troubleshooting, perform pre-flight inspections and assist with navigation and fuel management systems on the KC-10. The fuel being offloaded by the crew is used to support aircraft providing air support to the troops on the ground.

The Tampa, Fla., native performs these duties before, during and post air refueling missions in the area of responsibility with a crew of four including himself, a pilot, a co-pilot and a boom operator.

“My crew helps me every mission,” said Bailey. “They help me by troubleshooting malfunctions, maintain and calculate the fuel state of the aircraft and assisting with navigation to avoid no-fly areas.”

By keeping the aircraft capable and keeping missions running smoothly, Bailey directly supports Operation Enduring Freedom.

The 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron provides critical aerial refueling to aircraft in the area of responsibility, delivering more than one million gallons of fuel to the fight every day. In 2011, the 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron offloaded more than 390 million pounds of fuel to more than 28,000 airplanes, flew more than 36,700 hours in almost 4,600 missions. The average sortie length for a KC-10 mission in Southwest Asia was about eight hours.

“My favorite part about this deployment is the fact that our mission sees results,” Bailey said. “It’s a great feeling knowing that the fuel we offload saves lives, and we get to execute the air tasking order on time, everyday.”

Bailey has been in the Air Force for more than 14 years and this is his tenth deployment.

• Date Taken: 02.26.2012
• Date Posted: 02.29.2012 02:32
• Story ID: 84471
• Location: (UNDISCLOSED LOCATION)