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   An RC-135 takes offAn Offutt-based RC-135 V/W Rivet Joint climbs into the air during Global Thunder 17, U.S. Strategic Command’s annual command post and field training exercise, Oct. 30, 2016, at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. The exercise provided training opportunities for USSTRATCOM-tasked components, task forces, units and command posts to deter and, if necessary, defeat a military attack against the United States and to employ forces as directed by the President.
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
 RC-135V/W Rivet Joint**Mission**
The RC-135V/W Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft supports theater and national level consumers with near real time on-scene intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination capabilities.**Features**
The aircraft is an extensively modified C-135. The Rivet Joint's modifications are primarily related to its on-board sensor suite, which allows the mission crew to detect, identify and geolocate signals throughout the electromagnetic spectrum. The mission crew can then forward gathered information in a variety of formats to a wide range of consumers via Rivet Joint's extensive communications suite.
The interior seats more than 30 people, including the cockpit crew, electronic warfare officers, intelligence operators and in-flight maintenance technicians.
The Rivet Joint fleet was re-engined with CFM-56 engines with an upgraded flight deck instrumentation and navigational systems to FAA/ICAO standards. These standards include conversion from analog readouts to a digital "glass cockpit" configuration.
All Rivet Joint airframe and mission systems modifications are overseen by L-3 Communications (previously Raytheon), under the oversight of Air Force Materiel Command.

A USAF RC-135 disconnects from a USAF KC-10 ExtenderA USAF RC-135V/W Rivet Joint disconnects from a USAF KC-10 Extender after receiving fuel near Iraq on Dec. 5, 2016. The RC-135 fleet has been present in every sizeable U.S. conflict since the Vietnam War. It continues its legacy in Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, a multinational effort to weaken and destroy Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant operations in the Middle East region and around the world.
            
            
            Photo Details /
                Download Hi-Res
    
    The RC-135V/W Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft supports theater and national level consumers with near real time on-scene intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination capabilities.The RC-135V/W Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft supports theater and national level consumers with near real time on-scene intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination capabilities.
            
            
            Photo Details /
                Download Hi-Res
    
    The RC-135V/W Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft supports theater and national level consumers with near real time on-scene intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination capabilities.The RC-135V/W Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft supports theater and national level consumers with near real time on-scene intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination capabilities.
            
            
            Photo Details /
                Download Hi-Res


**Background**
The current RC-135 fleet is the latest iteration of modifications to this pool of -135 aircraft going back to 1962. Initially employed by Strategic Air Command to satisfy nationally tasked intelligence collection requirements, the RC-135 fleet has also participated in every sizable armed conflict involving U.S. assets during its tenure.
RC-135s were present supporting operations in Vietnam, the Mediterranean for Operation El Dorado Canyon, Grenada for Operation Urgent Fury, Panama for Operation Just Cause, and Southwest Asia for operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. RC-135s have maintained a constant presence in Southwest Asia since the early 1990s.
All RC-135s are assigned to Air Combat Command. The RC-135 is permanently based at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., and operated by the 55th Wing, using various forward deployment locations worldwide. More recently, RC-135s have also supported Operation Allied Force in Kosovo, and Operation Odyssey Dawn/Unified Protector in Libya**General Characteristics
Primary Function:**Reconnaissance**Contractor:** L-3 Communications**Power Plant:** Four CFM International F108-CF-201 high bypass turbofan engines**Thrust:**21,600 pounds each engine**Wingspan:**131 feet (39.9 meters)**Length:**135 feet (41.1 meters)**Height:**42 feet (12.8 meters)**Weight:**173,000 pounds (78,743 kilograms)**Maximum Takeoff Weight:**297,000 pounds (133,633 kilograms)**Fuel Capacity:**130,000 pounds (58,967 kilograms)**Speed:**500+ miles per hour (Mach.66)**Range:** 3,900 miles (6,500 kilometers)**Ceiling:**50,000 feet (15,240 meters)**Crew:**(flight crew) five (augmented) - three pilots, two navigators; (mission flight crew) 21-27, depending on mission requirements, minimum consisting of three electronic warfare officers, 14 intelligence operators and four inflight/airborne maintenance technicians**Unit Cost:**unavailable**Initial operating capability:**January 1964**Inventory:**Active force, 17; Reserve, 0; Guard, 0
 Related Links
        RC-135 DVIDS page
   MORE FACT SHEETS
        Aircraft
        AC-130J Ghostrider
                    
                    AC-130J Ghostrider
                
                AC-130W Stinger II
                    
                    AC-130W Stinger II
                
                C-32
                    
                    C-32
                
                CV22
                    
                    CV-22 Osprey
                
                C-40C
                    
                    C-40B/C
                
                A U.S. Air Force C-37 taxis after landing
                    
                    C-37A/B
                
                C-130 Hercules
                    
                    C-130 Hercules
        RSS
    
    Major Commands
        Air Force Special Operations Command Rotator
                    
                    Air Force Special Operations Command
                
                Air Force Global Strike Command Rotator
                    
                    Air Force Global Strike Command
                
                Air Combat Command Rotator
                    
                    Air Combat Command
                
                Air Force Materiel Command Rotator
                    
                    Air Force Materiel Command
                
                Air Education and Training Command Rotator
                    
                    Air Education and Training Command
                
                Air Mobility Command Rotator
                    
                    Air Mobility Command
        RSS
    
    Weapons
        The Air Force Distributed Common Ground System (AF DCGS), also referred to as the AN/GSQ-272 SENTINEL weapon system, is the Air Force’s primary intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) collection, processing, exploitation, analysis and dissemination (CPAD) system. 
(U.S. Air Force photo)
                    
                    Air Force Distributed Common Ground System
                
                LGM-30G Minuteman III
                    
                    LGM-30G Minuteman III
                
                Sniper Pod
                    
                    Sniper Pod
                
                LITENING ADVANCE TARGETING
                    
                    LITENING ADVANCE TARGETING
                
                Guardian Angel
                
                Massive Ordnance Penetrator
                
                The AN/ASQ-236 Radar Pod contains synthetic aperture radar that provides detailed maps for surveillance, coordinate generation and bomb impact assessment purposes.  It will be operational on the F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft. (U.S. Air Force photo)
                    
                    AN/ASQ-236 Radar Pod
        RSS  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