News United States Air Force
 AMC’s longest flight: 24.2 hours in a KC-46APublished May 10, 2022
                        
                        By Airman Brenden Beezley
                        
                        
                        22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
                **MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. (AFNS) --**
                


    
    Captain Taylor Johnson, 349th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, checks the flight path details May 5, 2022. Johnson is able to see live updates of weather, air traffic and flight plans using a Stratus puck. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)Capt. Taylor Johnson, 349th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, checks the flight path details May 5, 2022. The software allows Johnson to see live updates of weather, air traffic and flight plans during a 24-hour sortie in a KC-46A Pegasus, part of the Air Mobility Command’s longest flight ever. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)
            
            
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Airmen from the **22nd Air Refueling Wing** completed a 24.2-hour flight on a **KC-46A Pegasus** May 5-6, to and from **McConnell Air Force Base**.The KC-46 is **Air Mobility Command**’s newest aerial refueling platform, and now after completing the 24-hour flight, holds AMC’s record for the longest duration flight in its history.The flight was for more than just bragging rights and getting in the history books, this was a crucial test of the capabilities of aerial refueling, a key factor of the United States Air Force’s global reach.This flight took several weeks of planning, requiring collaboration from AMC, Boeing and various squadrons around the 22nd ARW.In the weeks leading up to the flight, the planning teams had to remain flexible, balancing current operational needs, local extreme weather and logistical challenges that arose from the unprecedented nature of this flight.Major Kevin Rose, 349th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, and Capt. Kevin Abbott, 344th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, pilot a KC-46A Pegasus while receiving fuel from another KC-46 stationed at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, May 5, 2022. The crew were flying a 24-hour sortie, the longest in Air Mobility Command’s history. In order to ensure the safety of the flight, two pilot crews rotated on and off four-hour shifts allowing adequate time for rest. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)Maj. Kevin Rose, 349th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, and Capt. Kevin Abbott, 344th ARS instructor pilot, pilot a KC-46A Pegasus while receiving fuel from another KC-46 stationed at McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., May 5, 2022. The crew were flying a 24-hour sortie, the longest in Air Mobility Command’s history. In order to ensure the safety of the flight, two pilot crews rotated on and off for 4-hour shifts allowing adequate time for rest. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)
            
            
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    Major Kevin Rose, 349th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, shaves his face May 6, 2022. Rose was one of six pilots aboard the 24-hour sortie out of McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, which was the longest flight in Air Mobility Command’s history. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)Maj. Kevin Rose, 349th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, shaves while aboard a KC-46A Pegasus, May 6, 2022. Rose was one of six pilots aboard the 24-hour sortie out of McConnell Air Force Base, Kan., the longest flight in Air Mobility Command’s history. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)
            
            
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    Staff Sgt. Jonathan Sanders and Master Sgt. Justin Miller, 349th Air Refueling Squadron boom operators, set up palletized cots in the back of a KC-46A Pegasus May 5, 2022. The crew were flying a 24-hour sortie, the longest in Air Mobility Command’s history. In order to ensure the safety of the flight, two pilot crews rotated on and off four-hour shifts allowing adequate time for rest. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)Staff Sgt. Jonathan Sanders and Master Sgt. Justin Miller, 349th Air Refueling Squadron boom operators, set up palletized cots in the back of a KC-46A Pegasus May 5, 2022. The crew were flying a 24-hour sortie, the longest in Air Mobility Command’s history. In order to ensure the safety of the flight, two pilot crews rotated on and off for 4-hour shifts allowing adequate time for rest. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)
            
            
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Safety measures were at the forefront of the flight. The physical and mental well-being of the aircrew was closely monitored by an onboard physician assistant.The Karolinska Sleepiness Scale, a detailed questionnaire on the crew members current fatigue levels, was administered to the crew throughout the flight in conjunction with the Psychomotor Vigilance Task test, a test developed by **NASA** that monitors fatigue levels by measuring cognitive function in comparison to a preflight baseline. Additionally, the Fatigue Avoidance Scheduling Tool, a software that develops an optimal inflight schedule for the pilots, was implemented for this endurance mission to mitigate the effects of fatigue.“In flight medicine, our goal is to preserve not only the health and safety of the aircrew, but also to preserve the safety of the missions those aircrew perform,” said Maj. Cory Henderson, 349th Air Refueling Squadron aeromedical physician assistant. “For this mission, we’ve tried to do that from the start of planning and now through the execution phase.”The aircrew consisted of six pilots, three boom operators, a photojournalist, and a physician assistant. Two pilot teams rotated on and off for 4-hour shifts. A backup pilot team, ready to step in as needed, focused on gathering data and taking extensive notes. The rotating shifts ensured adequate time for rest and the safety of the mission.During the 24 hours in flight, the McConnell AFB KC-46 performed dry contacts with another McConnell AFB KC-46, refueled four Marine F-35s, and was refueled by another McConnell AFB KC-46. The flight flew along both of the U.S. international borders as well as along a majority of both of the coasts before ultimately landing back at McConnell AFB, traveling over 9,000 miles, and completing the longest duration flight in AMC history.The data collected from this will be used to determine the feasibility, limitations, potential risks as well as unique benefits of the KC-46 for long-duration flights.Captain Kevin Abbott, 344th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, coordinates route changes with Los Angeles Air Traffic Control Center May 5, 2022. Route changes were necessary to avoid thunderstorms while still make the air refueling control time with the receivers. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)Capt. Kevin Abbott, 344th Air Refueling Squadron instructor pilot, coordinates route changes with Los Angeles Air Traffic Control Center May 5, 2022. Route changes were necessary to avoid thunderstorms while still make the air refueling control time with the receivers during a 24-hour sortie in a KC-46A Pegasus, completing the Air Mobility Command’s longest flight ever. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Brenden Beezley)
            
            
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**Col. Nate Vogel**, 22nd Air Refueling Wing commander. “This sortie helps mobility forces identify how best to operate on long-duration sorties from human, to machine, to mission aspects. Long-duration flights are inherently full of risk, and conducting this operation now allows us to identify those risks, and then build and apply mitigations in a more controlled environment. The joint force, our allies, and our partners rely on our capability to project combat power globally ... we need to be ready to execute anytime, anywhere. This 24-hour sortie is a huge step in realizing that vision.”LR 



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