Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      A KC-135 Stratotanker refuels a B-52 Stratofortress, above Minnesota, July 31, 2016. Four of McConnell's KC-135s assisted in refueling two B-52s to reach Polar Roar. Polar Roar is a mission in the Arctic Circle that demonstrates the ability to provide a flexible and vigilant long-range global-strike capability. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Christopher Thornbury)Tankers enable long-range bomber capability during Polar Roar
                        
                        
                        A KC-135 Stratotanker refuels a B-52 Stratofortress above Minnesota July 31, 2016. Four KC-135s from McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., assisted in refueling two B-52s to reach Polar Roar. Polar Roar is a mission in the Arctic Circle that demonstrates the ability to provide a flexible and vigilant long-range, global-strike capability. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Christopher Thornbury)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        A KC-135 Stratotanker refuels a B-52 Stratofortress, above Minnesota, July 31, 2016. Four of McConnell's KC-135s provided a non-stop flight for two B-52s to participate in Polar Roar, a mission held in the Arctic Circle. Polar Roar included three non-stop, simultaneous strategic bomber routes. The B-52s and B-2 Spirits demonstrated the ability to provide a flexible and vigilant long-range global-strike capability. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Christopher Thornbury)Tankers enable long-range bomber capability during Polar Roar
                        
                        
                        A KC-135 Stratotanker refuels a B-52 Stratofortress above Minnesota July 31, 2016. Four KC-135s from McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., assisted in refueling two B-52s to reach Polar Roar. Polar Roar is a mission in the Arctic Circle that demonstrates the ability to provide a flexible and vigilant long-range, global-strike capability. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Christopher Thornbury)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Tankers enable long-range bomber capability during Polar RoarPublished Aug. 5, 2016
                    
                    By  Air Mobility Command Public Affairs
            **SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFNS) --**Mobility Airmen play a vital role in deterrence and stand ready to operate in support of global operations at a moment’s notice.Air Mobility Command Airmen, 15 KC-135 Stratotankers and 10 KC-10 Extenders enabled Air Force Global Strike Command B-52 Stratofortresses and B-2 Spirits to sustain air operations for more than 20 hours during ‪Polar Roar July 31.‬‬Through multiple air refuelings, strategic bombers conducted intercept training using three different flight paths that encompassed more than 55,500 miles with North American Aerospace Defense Command-assigned fighters. Additionally, they conducted inert weapon drops training at the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex.“The 618th Air Operations Center here supports bomber assurance and deterrence missions throughout the year but not to this level of synchronization, nor simultaneously,” said Maj. Matthew Wilcoxen, the 618th AOC new requirements branch chief. “In 2015, we supported two different bomber segments in two different theaters simultaneously, requiring 11 tankers,” he continued. “This year’s addition of a third bomber segment during Polar Roar coupled with the addition of a third theater (Europe) increased the tanker requirement for a total of 25 tankers.”Tankers are critical to U.S. Strategic Command, and AMC is the only Air Force command with trained Airmen able to provide and meet their air refueling needs, he said.  For this reason, tanker crews routinely practice bomber refueling during missions around the globe during exercises and in day-to-day operations.In all, KC-10s from the 305th Air Mobility Wing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, delivered nearly 300,000 pounds of fuel during their 10-hour sortie.Maj. Matthew Jones, a pilot assigned to the 349th Air Refueling Squadron at McConnell AFB, Kansas, led a formation of four tankers in off-loading 200,000 pounds of fuel during Polar Roar.“Tankers are extremely important to STRATCOM’s missions,” Jones said. “(STRATCOM’s) goal is to be anywhere on the globe to show deterrence, but they do not have that capability alone. They need tankers to reach their destination.” Polar Roar helped ensure bomber crews maintain a high state of readiness and crew proficiency and demonstrated their ability to provide a flexible and vigilant long-range, global-strike capability. The exercise also provided opportunities to synchronize strategic activities and capabilities with regional allies and partners.B-52s from the 2nd Bomb Wing flew nonstop from Nellis AFB, Nevada, to the North and Baltic Seas, where they conducted intercept training with the Portuguese Air Force and Royal Canadian Air Force fighter aircraft, before returning to Barksdale AFB, Louisiana.At the same time, B-2s from the 509th Bomb Wing at Whiteman AFB, Missouri, flew over the Pacific Ocean to Alaska’s Aleutian Islands, where they practiced intercepts with NORAD-assigned fighter aircraft and conducted inert weapons drops at the JPARC.In addition to strengthening air crew skills and enhancing familiarity with operating worldwide, missions such as Polar Roar serve to improve AMC’s interoperability and capability to enable others to respond to any threat across the globe.The following bases facilitated air refuelings: JB McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst; McConnell AFB; Fairchild AFB, Washington; Sioux City Air National Guard Base, Iowa; Travis AFB, California; MacDill AFB, Florida; Seymour-Johnson AFB, North Carolina; Pease Air National Guard Base, New Hampshire; and Bangor Air National Guard Base, Maine.(Editors Note: Airman 1st Class Christopher Thornbury from McConnell AFB and Senior Airman Joshua King from Joint Base McGuire Dix-Lakehurst contributed this article.)Polar Roar 



exercise 



nuclear deterrence 



nuclear 



B-52 



AMC Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fight
                    
                    SecAF Kendall AFA Warfare Symposium Q&A: Reoptimizing for Great Power CompetitionInnovation
                AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalists
                    
                    Chief Digital, Artificial Intelligence Office to host hackathon in HawaiiMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil