Air-to-Air Refueling Training through Multinational Cooperation

The HAW, operating three C-17As out of Pápa Air Base, Hungary, executes airlift missions requested by the 12 member nations of the SAC. In order to be able to carry out long-range missions all around the world, HAW aircraft commanders have to practice air-to-air refueling regularly. As the HAW does not operate any tankers of its own, air-to-air refueling training is facilitated through several bilateral agreements established by the NATO Airlift Management Programme Office (NAM PO).

“As the acquisition and sustainment authority of the SAC C-17A weapon system, the NAM PO manages the agreements which provide the HAW aircrews with access to air-to-air refueling training", explains Mr. Bart Hummel, the NAM PO Branch Chief for Logistics and Mission Support.

HAW aircrews receive their C-17A simulator training at the Boeing Defence UK facility in Farnborough, the United Kingdom. In order to provide the pilots an opportunity to train refueling in the air, the HAW cooperates closely with the United States Air Force (USAF), the United States Air National Guard (ANG) and the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF). Cooperation is mutually beneficial; HAW pilots receive the necessary training to sustain their air-to-air refueling qualifications, while the USAF, ANG and RNLAF tanker crews get the opportunity to train with a C-17A.

At the moment, the HAW trains air-to-air refueling with tankers from the 100th Air Refueling Wing (100 ARW), USAF, based at RAF Mildenhall, the United Kingdom; the 334 Transport Squadron (334 Sqn), RNLAF, based at Eindhoven Air Base, the Netherlands; and different ANG air refueling wings stationed on a rotational basis at Geilenkirchen Air Base, Germany. While the 100 ARW and the ANG units fly the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, the 334 Sqn operates the McDonnell Douglas KDC-10 Extender. Thus, HAW pilots get valuable experience from training with two different tanker airframes.

Lt Col Peer Geelen (RNLAF), the Director of Operations of the HAW Heavy Airlift Squadron (HAS), points out that training cooperation with the ANG units, the 100 ARW, and the 334 Sqn is an efficient solution to providing the 12 member nations of the SAC with access to C-17As capable of air-to-air refueling. “The SAC nations are our customers, therefore, we have to be able to meet their requirements. Close cooperation with the USAF, the ANG and the RNLAF helps us to maintain air-to-air refueling capability as cost-effectively as possible", Lt Col Geelen emphasizes.