United States reportedly sends sixth Stratotanker refueling aircraft to Romania
The United States Air Force has sent the sixth Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft, used for aerial refueling missions, to Bucharest, according to Boarding Pass. The aircraft flew to the Romanian capital from an air base near the city of Meridian in Mississippi, and landed in Bucharest on Sunday morning, March 22.
Before their arrival, three of the five Stratotankers that were already in the Romanian capital carried out the second series of refueling missions in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, according to the same source. The planes were airborne for about six hours.
The first aerial refueling missions were carried out on Thursday, March 19, by Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft of the United States Air Force stationed at the 90th Air Base. Romanian defense minister Radu Miruță confirmed that three aircraft carried out a flight outside Romanian airspace, without giving further details.
“Based on last week’s Parliament decision, we are making the 90th Base available for these aircraft. I can confirm that three aircraft departed last night, that they carried out a flight, but whether they refueled or not is not something that is reported to us,” he stated.
The official added that Parliament voted for the deployment of “up to 15” such aircraft.
According to AF.mil, the KC-135 Stratotanker has been included in the United States Air Force inventory for about 60 years. It is used to refuel Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and allied nation aircraft. Each plane costs about USD 40 million.
US refueling aircraft, monitoring systems, and satellite communication equipment were given permission to temporarily deploy to Romania, as announced by president Nicușor Dan after discussions in the CSAT on Wednesday, March 11. The deployment was later approved by Parliament. The planes support other units that take part in the war in Iran.
(Photo source: Andrew David Periam|Dreamstime.com)
