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# Tanker's first flight over top of the world marks new era in efficiency

By Force Capt. Kathleen FerrerroHeadquarters Air Mobility Command

MANAS, Kyrgyzstan - The  Air Force and Air National Guard can now say they have gone to the ends of the  earth to support operations in Afghanistan.

A KC-135 Stratotanker, with a Total Force crew of active duty and Air National  Guard members, flew north until it started flying south, June 21 to 22. 

The tanker cut a new pathway over  the Arctic Circle and the North Pole between Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash.,  and the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan. 

It was the first time an Air Force  air refueling tanker has ever flown this route.

The mission followed another historic flight that took place June 5 to 6 when a  C-5M Super Galaxy traversed the Arctic Circle to fly the first direct delivery  airlift mission from Dover Air Force Base, Del., to Bagram Air Field,  Afghanistan.

A 2009 U.S.-Russia transit agreement helped make the new arctic routes  possible, according to U.S. Transportation Command. The KC-135 flight over the  North Pole alone saved the Air Force approximately 4.5 hours and $54,000.

"These routes give us interesting new options and open new  corridors," said Air Force Maj. Chris Fuller, a plans chief at the 618th  Air and Space Operations Center, Tanker Airlift Control Center.

The Fairchild tanker crew flew to Manas, a key air refueling base for  Afghanistan operations, as part of an iron swap to deploy the aircraft and four  Airmen there. 

The Air Force can use Russian air space for iron swaps as well as transport  passengers and cargo, Fuller said.

Typically, KC-135 crews doing tanker swaps from Fairchild fly to England, stay  the night, and then fly to Kyrgyzstan the next day.

While a few hours and thousands of dollars may not seem like much, projected  savings could be remarkable, officials said. The Air Force is the Defense  Department's largest fuel customer, and Air Mobility Command consumes  approximately 60 percent of the Air Force's fuel. 

Fuel savings such as those accrued by more direct routes "can be used to  recapitalize the aging fleet as well as provide for incentives that support  more ideas to improve fuel efficiency," said Air Force Lt. Col. Marc  Gildner of the AMC Fuel Efficiency Office. 

With budget constraints, the ability to back incentives that inspire efficiency  is invaluable. 

Undersecretary of the Air Force Erin Conaton said during a 2010 visit to AMC,  fuel savings can help AMC "reinvest those dollars in things that make the  mobility air forces as highly effective as possible."

New routes like the KC-135 polar over-flight also help AMC more effectively  support combatant commanders. 

Bypassing the United Kingdom, the KC-135 polar over-flight crew saved two days  of mandatory crew rest, including their anticipated return from Manas. The two  days were added to their deployment time at Manas, said Air Force 1st Lt.  Remington Barnes, 92nd Air Refueling Squadron pilot.

Such shifting of resources comes at a crucial period, when tankers are in  higher demand than ever, statistics show. Additionally, when NATO operations in  Libya began, KC-135s provided refueling support to the no-fly zone.

Meanwhile, the need for tankers in Afghanistan didn't let up, explained Air  Force Maj. Jeff Schrum, aircraft commander of the KC-135 polar over-flight  mission. 

Air refueling crews have continually set records since Sept. 11, 2001. 

"Our tanker crews underwrite America's ability to project power  rapidly," said Air Force Gen. Raymond E. Johns Jr., AMC commander.  "They provide the bridge for global reach -- enabling us to provide the  right effects, to the right place, at the right time." 

The flight, made possible by close diplomatic cooperation and months of  operational planning, could open doors for future efficiencies as well as  strengthen global partnerships, AMC officials said.

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