U.S. Air Force aerial refuelers supports German Typhoon fighter jets

The U.S. Air Force has released footage showing Airmen from the 351st Air Refueling Squadron and 100th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron with its KC-135 Stratotankers supported German air force Eurofighter Typhoons.

German fighter jets received fuel over Germany from a Bloody Hundredth’s KC-135 Stratotanker from the 100th Air Refueling Wing, RAF Mildenhall, England, Dec 4, 2019, according to a recent service news release.

The Bloody Hundredth is the only permanent U.S. air refueling wing in the European theater, providing the critical air refueling “bridge” which allows the Expeditionary Air Force to deploy around the globe at a moment’s notice.

The KC-135 Stratotanker provides the core aerial refueling capability for the United States Air Force and has excelled in this role for more than 60 years. This unique asset enhances the Air Force’s capability to accomplish its primary mission of global reach. It also provides aerial refueling support to Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and allied nation aircraft. The KC-135 is also capable of transporting litter and ambulatory patients using patient support pallets during aeromedical evacuations.

The group inherited the “Bloody Hundredth” nickname from other bomb groups due to the number of losses it took. The group experienced several instances where it lost a dozen or more aircraft on a single mission, and for the next six months, the group focused its bombing attacks against German airfields, industries, and naval facilities in France and Germany. One such raid on 10 October 1943, that the 100th BG made on Münster, ended up with the only surviving 100th BG B-17, the Rosie’s Riveters (B-17F 42-30758) commanded by Robert Rosenthal, returning safely to Thorpe Abbots.