Flying with the 117th

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M50o93H7pQ09L8X1t49cHY01Z5j4TT91fGfr Flying with the 117th
Published: Mon, August 13, 2007 - 9:00 am
Last Updated: Monday, August 13, 2007 - 9:33 am
Last month, News 5 got the chance to fly with Birmingham's 117th Air Refueling Wing. It was an amazing experience. On this mission, the 117th refueled F-15 fighters from Tyndall Air Force Base in the Florida Panhandle. We watched as F-15s came within feet of our plane. Boom operators like to joke that they fly backwards, lay down and pass gas. Its actually true! The boom operator's area is at the back of the plane. They lay down and direct the boom to the into the gas tank on the fighter. It has to be tough, but the 117th made it look easy! We were close enough we could see the fighter pilot's faces and wave at them.
When the pilots finished gassing up, they would fly on the edge of the tankers wing.It was like being in a movie! We took some amazing pictures and video. The video at the right of the page, is video I took with my digital camera.


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