My team was on an inspection and got a hop on a KC-135 (from the 100 ARW at Mildenhall) to go from Ramstein to Mildenhall. A one hour flight {sung like Gilligan’s Island} a one hour, a one hour flight.
The aircraft reeked of JP-4, and my feet were freezing while my head was sweltering from the air blowers.
The crew chief and load master climbed up on some loaded pallets, threw their coats over the faces and went to sleep.
I knew something was up after about an hour and half. So I went forward to the pee tube next to the cockpit and asked the crew what was up. They said we were diverted to a refuel mission over the Adriatic in support of the no fly zone mission over Bosnia. This was in 1994/95? Right before IFOR went in on the ground.
So that one hour flight lasted 10 hours. Us passengers (my captain, myself (SMSgt), two TSgts and a SRA) on the plane had 1 large snickers bar between us. They did let us go back and watch the refueling. Anyway, we left at 1300; landed at RAF Mildenhall around 22:30. Lucky for us billeting didn’t give up our rooms!
Good times remembered!