EEUU
Se ha llevado a cabo el último vuelo estadounidense desde el centro de tránsito en el aeropuerto de Manas, Kirguizistán, banderazo final a la utilización de la instalación como punto logístico a las operaciones militares en Afganistán...
... un avión cisterna de la USAF KC-135 Stratotanker ha sido el protagonista...
Manas KC-135s complete final mission, leave Kyrgyzstan
Posted 2/24/2014 Updated 2/25/2014
by Staff Sgt. Travis Edwards376th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
2/24/2014 - TRANSIT CENTER AT MANAS, Kyrgyzstan -- The Transit Center's final aerial refueling mission over Afghanistan landed here Feb. 24, 2014, signifying the end of an era.
After six hours of traveling, refueling A-10 Thunderbolt IIs, (who happened to be supporting troops in contact) and F-16 Fighting Falcons, the KC-135 Stratotanker touched down to a fanfare of saluting Airmen.
Col. Mike Seiler, 376th Expeditionary Operations Group commander, piloted the historical flight.
"It's a pretty special to be able to say that we were able to fly on the last sortie out of Manas," said Seiler, who is deployed from MacDill, Air Force Base, Fla. "When [I] think about it, we flew our last sortie just like we did our first one: fighter support, troops in contact. ... I got chills rolling down the runway for the last time."
Over the last 12.5 years at the Transit Center, KC-135s flew 33,500 sorties, which led to 135,000 aircraft refueled with more than 625,000 gallons of gas delivered, enough to fill 9,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
Shortly after the mission crew landed, another KC-135 crew took off, bound for Fairchild AFB, Wash. Before the end of the evening two more KC-135s started home, leaving only an iced-over C-17 on the runway.
"I wish there was an honest way to track how many times a tanker mission has directly affected troops on the ground," said Seiler, a native of Oklahoma City, Okla.
Senior Master Sgt Jeffrey Bishop, 22nd Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron superintendent, was the boom for the final mission.
"It all comes down to people ... Airmen with a big 'A,'" said Bishop, who is deployed from McConnell AFB, Kan. "This team; I would go to war with them anytime."
