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CNN LIVE EVENT/SPECIAL

NATO and U.S. Crews Come Together For Mid-Air Refueling

Aired October 18, 2001 - 05:45   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Another story of great interest. You can call it gas station in the sky. That's what it takes to refuel some of those huge airplanes flying to Afghanistan.

LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: That's right. CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT Gary Tuchman went along for the ride on one of these planes to see how it works -- here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is not a drill. AWAC surveillance planes are now flying over the United States, patrolling American air space, and they are NATO planes loaned by crewmembers from 11 different nations.

At Robins Air Force Base in Georgia, U.S. air men and women have an integral role in this first-of-its-kind mission.

This is the KC-135 Stratotanker. Its commander is a 17 year Air Force veteran.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The circumstance could obviously be a lot better, but it makes me feel proud.

TUCHMAN: The pride comes from the KC-135's principal mission, which can only be witnessed in the back of the plane, down some stairs, lying on your stomach.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, gentlemen, this is what it's all about.

TUCHMAN: They are the 19th Air Refueling Group. They pump gasoline in the sky. The AWAC plane, with a Belgian commander, has an air speed of more than 400 miles per hour, which means the refueling plane does too. To connect takes daring choreography.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Contact.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To refuel those guys, being NATO, it's fantastic.

TUCHMAN (on camera): When the connection between the two planes occurs, all you feel is a thump, which you might not even notice if you weren't paying close attention; 10,000 gallons of gasoline is now being pumped, and it all takes less than 15 minutes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Offload's complete.

(voice-over): The work is potentially dangerous. In-flight refueling specialists can't let the AWAC's pilot strike the 40 foot flying boom.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He could come in too fast, he could hit that boom, he can hit us -- a mid-air collision, and then you've got, you know, obviously big problems.

TUCHMAN: But this mission went off without a hitch. The AWAC plane can now continue patrolling the U.S. for hours longer without landing.

COL. BARB FAULKENBERRY, 19TH AIR REFUELING GROUP: To allow two crews that may not even speak the same primary tongue to get within 30 feet of each other in the air, that's training.

TUCHMAN: These NATO crews come from Italy to Germany to Turkey to Canada, but they come with a message of unity, which while preparing for their rendezvous with the tanker, they make clear on the dashboard of their state-of-the-art airplane.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, aboard a U.S. Air Force KC-135.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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