Chapter Four - The Tanker

Various air national guard units provide flying fuel tanker services. Generally, your flight plan will include a fuel need location and time and they will have an aircraft in the vicinity for a hook up. Not having a flight and being unannounced meant that there was not much opportunity for a chance meeting.

There was also the risk of no tankers, or any other aircraft, making it off the ground anyway. I started checking my electronic sectionals (maps) for where I might be able to land.

My vertical takeoff and landing capability meant that I had many more options for putting down somewhere. However, if I put down someplace that did not have fuel then the plane would likely be there forever.

Tanker crews desperately want to contribute to any campaign. They are stuck in the flying gas station role and because of that they will make any effort to support tactical aircraft. Given that they are unarmed and not particularly fast they are at great risk if they are discovered by an opponent. Crewing a tanker takes a lot of guts and nerve.

It was dark and my fuel state panel was reminding me that my time was short. Landing at a military airbase was probably risky because those were either destroyed or under surveillance. A commercial or private field might be an option but would be unpredictable.

I had my aircraft as passive as possible meaning that I had no navigation lights on and was not emanating any RF in hopes of reducing the chance that I would be noticed. My IFF was the only exception to that. It was listening for any evidence of a friendly and would interact with them on its own if one was found. My IFF suddenly illuminated an indication of an airborne friendly not far away. At that point I had to decide if approaching them was worth the risk and additional fuel that would be expended.

I also had to decide if I wanted to turn on my radar so that I could "see" them because they were dark as well. I figured that I had no choice. Either take the risk and hopefully get gas or put down. Before turning on the radar I tuned a secure radio to a guard frequency and turned it on. At the same time I hit the master arm selector. At that point my weapons load were spun up and ready for selection. I identified myself and transmitted to them with aircraft over TBD forest identify yourself.

The pilot was clearly shocked because they were completely unaware of me but responded correctly. If I had heard an incorrect response my radar would have be turned on, a weapon selected and the position of the aircraft sent to it. The weapon release would have been very quick and very final, for them.

I advised them that I was on fumes and needed an immediate tank up. They lit their navigation lights to make it easier for me to see them and extended the fuel boom. I was already maneuvering into position and prepped my aircraft to take on gas. At the same time I noticed that the insistent flashing of my fuel annunciator could be distracting because I had never been in this fuel state before.

Luckily the weather was accommodating so I had no trouble attaching. Fuel transfer started immediately and I felt my respiration and heart rate drop almost as quickly.

At this point I had time to talk to them and they were excited to find a friendly. They had come a long way and were just orbiting in their assigned block of airspace without hearing from any command authority.