UNIT NEWS
Clipper arrives in Hawaii
The ‘Windjammers’ of eet
logistics support squadron VR-
received the rst of two C-40A
Clippers on May 16 at MCAS
Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. The unit
previously operated the C-20G
Gulfstream IV in support of the
Navy Unique Fleet Essential Airlift
(NUFEA) mission.VP-1 completes
Poseidon transition
Patrol squadron VP-1 completed
its transition from the P-3C to the
P-8A and received its ‘safe-for-
ight’ designation on May 17,- The ‘Screaming Eagles’ is
the fourth of six NAS Whidbey
Island, Washington, active-duty
squadrons to transition from the
Orion to the Poseidon. It had
own several versions of the P-3C
since receiving the rst example
in 1984. VP-1 completed its nal
deployment with the Orion in
October 2018.Heritage Texan II unveiled
The 14th Flying Training Wing
unveiled the rst of six aircraft
that will receive heritage paint
schemes, during a ceremony
at Columbus AFB, Mississippi,
on May 30. The scheme applied
to T-6A serial 06-3837 (below),
operated by the 37th Flying
Training Squadron, is intended
to represent the squadron patch,
which features a Bengal tiger
mother with a cub in her mouth.
The gray Texan II features yellow
and black stripes that represent
the tiger. Application of the
agship schemes is part of the
air force chief of sta ’s initiative
to revitalize USAF squadrons and
each of the wing’s six squadrons
will eventually have its own
heritage aircraft.B-52H serial 60-0036 operated by the 412th Test Wing’s 419th
Flight Test Squadron conducts a captive carry test with a
prototype of the hypersonic AGM-183A Air Launched Rapid
Response Weapon (ARRW) on June 12. USAFPEGASUS MILESTONES
THE 22ND AIR Refueling Wing’s
344th Air Refueling Squadron
ew its rst mission in support of
KC-46A Initial Operational Test and
Evaluation (IOT&E) on June 4. The
mission saw the Pegasus o oad
29,000lb (13,154kg) of fuel to a
pair of F-16Cs. The mission was
intended to validate processes and
procedures that included pre- ight
checks, tanker contact preparation,
air-refueling, receiver procedures,
post-air refueling and post-landing
checks. Each IOT&E sortie lays a
foundation for subsequent missions
and data points gathered will be
implemented in future ights. The
344th ARS is scheduled to complete
multiple test ights in support of
IOT&E. These will involve a variety of
receiver aircraft.With elding to operational
units under way, Phase III testing
of the Pegasus continues with
the Global Reach Combined
Test Force and the 418th Flight
Test Squadron at Edwards AFB,
California. Recent milestones have
seen the Pegasus pass fuel to a
B-2A Spirit and EC-130H Compass
Call. The B-2A’s ying-wing design
posed ‘unique challenges to the
ying and handling qualities of the
tanker-receiver pair’ according to
the 419th Flight Test Squadron’s
B-2 ight commander. Testing has
now been conducted with the
B-52H and B-2A and plans for the
B-1B are in train. Begun in early
2019, the 15-month Phase III test
e ort is the nal phase of KC-46A
developmental testing.KC-46A test aircraft registration N842BA refuels a B-2A of the 419th
Flight Test Squadron for the fi rst time during developmental fl ight-test
on April 23, 2019. USAF/Christian TurnerUSAFUS NEWS [NEWS]
http://www.combataircraft.net // August 2019 09
8-11 US News C.indd 9 21/06/2019 12: