Since 1957, the KC-135 Stratotanker engineered by the long-standing Boeing airplane company has been operating to assist US Air Force airplanes in flight with refueling. At the time, the US Air Force used their jets often and would go for long hours in the air on their operations. The aircrafts weren't capable of carrying an extra load of gasoline, which was why they developed the KC-135 Stratotanker to fly up and use a transferring method to help them refuel.
Developing the Stratotanker Model
The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker possesses a basic resemblance to the famously known Boeing 707 or 720. It has 4 underwing mounted pods for the engine, the usual swept wings and a tail, a horizontal and vertical stabilizer to keep the aircraft balanced while in flight, and a high frequency radio antenna for communication with the aircraft that needs stratotanker refueling.
Utilizing the KC-135's Refueling Purposes
From the year 1957 until 1991, refueling remained to be an important part of in-flight operations. During this time, the Air Force Reserve and the Air National Guard of the United States used these aircrafts as employed by the Strategic Air Command. After some time, the aircrafts were then reassigned to the AMC (Air Mobility Command) and the United States Air Force in Europe and the Pacific Air Forces thereafter.
How the Refueling Stratotanker Works
Boeing's refueling aircraft can carry up to 322,500 lbs in flight because of the collective functioning capacity of its 4 turbojet engines and 35-degree swept wings. There is also a cargo deck that can hold a load of cargo or people aside from the weight of the fuel being transferred.
The tanker uses a fuel transferring method wherein almost all the internal fuel that it carries is pumped through the flying boom towards the gas tank of the receiving aircraft. For aircrafts that handle refueling via probes that are fitted to the gas tanks, there are shuttlecock-shaped contrapments called drogues that are attached to the tanker to help with this. There is also a boom operator at the back end of the tanker which regulates and controls the boom while transferring fuel from the tanker to the gas tank of the aircraft.
Other Uses of the Stratotanker
The KC-135 is primarily used to refuel aircrafts while they are in flight and when they can't carry an extra load of fuel. However, the same KC-135 Stratotanker has helped with other projects as well. In the years 1979 and 1980, the tankers were used by NASA at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center at the Edwards Air Force Base in California. The tankers were used as test subjects for "winglets" that were developed by Richard Whitcomb of the Langley Research Center. The winglets are small vertical fins attached to the wings to adjust the drag force of the aircraft. Fortunately, the project brought forth positive results in that the drag force was reduced by 7%. Now, winglets are being used by almost all commercial airplanes.
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