The size and complexity of the Gulf War called for the involvement of aerial refueling assets of the extent shown in the following table. Although the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Saudi Arabia, and the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps all provided refueling aircraft, Air Force tankers conducted the bulk of the aerial refueling during the operation. The assets conducting these operations came from 20 different active duty units, plus thirteen Air National Guard, three Air Force Reserve, and three associate units. Table 15 depicts the number of refueling events and total offloads provided by USAF tankers.384
Tanker Planning
Commander-in-Chief, Strategic Air Command Operation Plan (CINCSAC OPLAN) 1002-88 was the baseline planning document for refueling operations in support of the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) and U.S. Air Force Central Command (USCENTAF) OPLANs 1002. The SAC plan called for deployment of B-52s, RC‑135s, and U-2s; KC‑135s and KC-10s were to provide refueling support for operations. The KC-135s included KC‑135Rs to support the B-52s at Cairo East and KC-135Es to support the AOR from Jeddah New. The balance of the tankers would support the fighter deployment and airlift, with KC‑135A/Rs operating from the continental United States (CONUS), KC-135A/Rs and KC-10s operating in the Atlantic TTFs, and KC‑135As in the Pacific.
Changes in the CENTAF OPLAN in April 1990, added KC‑135s to support the AOR from Sharjah, UAE. SAC later argued that the number of tankers in the area of responsibility (AOR) to support more than 500 fighters plus Navy carrier air was insufficient. The changes also added additional KC-135s to Cairo East to support increased numbers of B‑52s, more KC‑135s to both the Atlantic and Pacific TTFs, and KC‑10s for tasking in MAC channels. More KC-10s would serve in a dual role of refueling deploying Tactical Air Command (TAC) fighters and airlifting their supporting personnel and cargo. All of these aircraft allocations were overtaken by the events in Desert Shield.385
Table 15
Total USAF Refueling Events and Receiver Onloads
SAC RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
KC-10
|
361
|
|
16,531,034
|
|
KC-135
|
23
|
|
656,032
|
|
B-52
|
2,166
|
|
137,225,933
|
|
RC-135
|
739
|
|
40,736,096
|
|
EC-135
|
69
|
|
3,295,603
|
|
FB-111
|
130
|
|
1,673,875
|
|
E-4
|
2
|
|
279,097
|
|
SAC SUBTOTAL
|
3,490
|
|
200,397,670
|
|
TAC RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
F-16
|
10,066
|
|
64,487,654
|
|
F-15
|
10,007
|
|
168,208,013
|
|
EC-130
|
206
|
|
2,765,913
|
|
A-10
|
2,863
|
|
12,344,576
|
|
E-3
|
937
|
|
54,912,230
|
|
EF-111
|
1,262
|
|
18,078,413
|
|
F-4
|
3,331
|
|
36,975,098
|
|
RF-4
|
436
|
|
4,635,936
|
|
F-117
|
Not Releasable
|
1,941,196
|
|
F-111
|
188
|
|
3,442,886
|
|
TAC SUBTOTAL
|
29,296
|
|
367,791,917
|
|
Table 15 (Continued)
Total USAF Refueling Events and Receiver Onloads
|
MAC RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
C-5
|
187
|
|
13,647,565
|
|
C-130
|
6
|
|
56,614
|
|
C-141
|
316
|
|
16,942,522
|
|
AC-130
|
12
|
|
268,646
|
|
EC-130
|
9
|
|
113,491
|
|
HC-130
|
2
|
|
20,064
|
|
WC-130
|
2
|
|
19,110
|
|
MC-130
|
19
|
|
191,872
|
|
MAC SUBTOTAL
|
553
|
|
31,259,884
|
|
|
|
|
USAFE RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
F-111
|
2,499
|
|
32,881,709
|
|
EF-111
|
142
|
|
1,820,768
|
|
FB-111
|
29
|
|
169,369
|
|
RF-4
|
112
|
|
893,849
|
|
F-4
|
1,730
|
|
20,648,531
|
|
F-16
|
4,015
|
|
22,421,805
|
|
F-15
|
2,260
|
|
30,673,651
|
|
WC-135
|
3
|
|
53,203
|
|
EC-135
|
6
|
|
107,942
|
|
EC-130
|
10
|
|
75,046
|
|
HC-130
|
1
|
|
9,555
|
|
A-10
|
852
|
|
3,151,776
|
|
USAFE SUBTOTAL
|
11,659
|
|
112,907,204
|
|
Table 15 (Continued)
Total USAF Refueling Events and Receiver Onloads
|
AFRES RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
F-16
|
20
|
|
120,736
|
|
A-10
|
55
|
|
257,491
|
|
C-5
|
28
|
|
2,082,630
|
|
C-141
|
7
|
|
316,166
|
|
KC-10
|
2
|
|
177,600
|
|
AFRES SUBTOTAL
|
112
|
|
2,954,623
|
|
|
|
|
SOF RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
AC-130
|
84
|
|
1,195,846
|
|
MC-130
|
39
|
|
527,289
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
SOF SUBTOTAL
|
123
|
|
1,723,135
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
ANG RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
A-10
|
5
|
|
2,496
|
|
C-141
|
8
|
|
371,564
|
|
EC-130
|
37
|
|
514,112
|
|
C-5
|
16
|
|
1,174,636
|
|
RF-4
|
327
|
|
3,410,534
|
|
F-16
|
118
|
|
828,057
|
|
F-15
|
14
|
|
146,131
|
|
ANG SUBTOTAL
|
525
|
|
6,447,530
|
|
Table 15 (Continued)
Total USAF Refueling Events and Receiver Onloads
|
USN RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
F-14
|
4,085
|
|
33,969,581
|
|
F/A-18
|
5,252
|
|
8,234,240
|
|
A-6
|
2,026
|
|
16,558,048
|
|
KA-6
|
262
|
|
3,286,630
|
|
EA-6
|
682
|
|
5,598,579
|
|
A-4
|
16
|
|
46,214
|
|
A-7
|
896
|
|
4,772,236
|
|
S-3
|
97
|
|
421,875
|
|
KA-3
|
2
|
|
15,475
|
|
USN SUBTOTAL
|
13,328
|
|
72,997,060
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
USMC RECEIVERS
|
REFUELING EVENTS
|
TOTAL ONLOAD
|
F/A-18
|
681
|
|
7,498,060
|
|
AV-8
|
238
|
|
2,905,017
|
|
EA-6
|
101
|
|
1,301,900
|
|
A-6
|
78
|
|
899,724
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
USMC SUBTOTAL
|
1,098
|
|
12,604,704
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
DROGUE REFUELINGS
|
14,426
|
|
85,601,761
|
|
BOOM REFUELINGS
|
45,758
|
|
723,481,963
|
|
GRAND TOTAL
|
60,184
|
|
809,083,724
|
|
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