Always there

  • Published
  • 18th Wing Public Affairs
KADENA AIR BASE, Japan --  The 909th Air Refueling Squadron recently surpassed 45 years at Kadena Air Base. It continues to deliver world-wide air-to-air refueling support to all branches of the U.S. Military and allied partners.

Throughout the squadron’s history, Airmen of the 909th enabled a broad range of Airpower capabilities that helped maintain stability in the Indo-Asia Pacific region. Although tasked with day-to-day support of numerous higher headquarter missions, the squadron participated in notable operations to include Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Enduring Freedom, and Iraqi Freedom.

“Global reach is a unique Air Force capability that enables our country to touch any place on the globe,” said Lt. Col. Jonathan Burdick, 909th ARS Commander. “With it, we can effectively expand the bounds of Airpower and provide senior leaders options they wouldn’t otherwise have.”

Kadena hosts 15 KC-135 Stratotankers, the same aircraft that has been the Air Force’s core aerial refueling asset for more than 50 years. After years of modifications and upgrades, each tanker is flown by relatively small aircrews often comprised of two pilots and a boom operator. World class training enables tanker aircrews to fly their aging aircraft wherever fuel is needed despite hazardous weather and political barriers. Each air refueling takes place thousands of feet in the air while being physically connected to a US or coalition receiver aircraft.

Air-to-air refueling requires careful coordination and planning well before take-off. Planning entails the combined effort of maintenance Airmen, weather specialists, intelligence experts, air traffic control, flight operations and many other agencies.

“We all work very hard to guarantee that everybody on the jet is on the same page,’” said Senior Airman Victoria Rose Mora, 909th ARS boom operator. “Everyone has that same mindset, that same momentum and we’re all striving to get the job done.”

Having enough fuel to take an aircraft from one destination to another often makes the difference between life and death. At any given moment, the 909th can be called to support higher headquarters missions; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance taskings; and aeromedical evacuation missions enabling Stratotankers to host medical teams transporting Department of Defense members to higher echelons of medical care.

Kadena’s Stratotankers continuously train and test their combat capabilities. The 909th Air Refueling Squadron’s commitment to training and exercises is essential to prepare Airmen for peacetime humanitarian assistance and war-time scenarios alike. Last year the 909th responded to two massive earthquakes in Nepal by delivering 115 tons of aid to 8 million people, and provided equipment that was essential for the care of 65 aeromedical patients.

Burdick said that squadron caters to a wide variety of PACAF missions that wouldn’t be possible if the squadron wasn’t able to train on a continuous basis.

During the first half of 2016, the 909th flew more than 850 missions, and since 2014, the squadron earned six Pacific Air Forces-level awards. The squadron’s accomplishments and milestones reinforce the importance of talented Airmen and the vibrant tanker culture resident at Kadena.

“Without a doubt, the biggest reward of being an Air Refueling Squadron Commander is the sense of pride and satisfaction earned by working with my Airmen,” said Burdick. “By empowering those Airmen, it makes them more capable and enables them to push the mission to where we’ve never been able to go before.”