Overcast skies, frequent rain, heavy fog, occasional snow and heavy ice characterized winter weather in England and Northern Europe. As a consequence, the fighter wings in USAFE sought the clear skies and warmth of North Africa and Spain to carry out their combat readiness gunnery and air refueling training. The 420th Air Refueling Squadron -- being the only air refueling outfit in the USAFE area -- was routinely tasked to deploy on a weekly TDY basis to Nouasseur Air Base (located near Casablanca, Morocco), Wheelus Air Base (Tripoli, Libya), and Moron Air Base (Seville, Spain). At these geographic locations, the fighter pilots could maintain and/or sharpen their flying proficiency when below minimum landing and/or icing conditions occurred at their home bases in Europe. This is a true story about one of our air-to-air refueling missions at Nouasseur. Some of you may recall the rather risqué nickname (sounding somewhat like the real name) that we applied to that same air base in Morocco. I am currently putting together two more short stories concerning 420th Air Refueling missions conducted out of Moron Air Base and Wheelus Air Base (during the pre-Kadafi years when the Arabs were genuinely very friendly to USAF personnel even when the Arabs were safely behind the walls of their own medina in downtown Tripoli). I became very knowledgeable of the shops in the medina and made (at least I thought at the time) some very good friends with the Arab shop owners. Digressing a moment, I can vividly remember a few of us joking that our Ops Planners at Headquarters USAFE always seemed to "call" USAFE alerts during the winter when the air bases in East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Poland were experiencing heavy runway icing conditions. During these alerts, USAFE’s light bombers, fighter bombers, and fighters would routinely "race" to the Iron Curtain penetration points (set forth in their War Plans) and then execute a hard 180 degree turn just prior to entering Soviet Bloc territory. Since I had additional duty as the 420th’s intelligence and war plans officer, I had access to USAFE intelligence reports stating that Soviet fighters on "hot alert" -- scrambling to take off and meet the incoming USAFE "threat" at the border -- had slid off their active runways and into the turf because of ice on their runways. What devilish fun these USAFE operations people must have had during those Cold War days. Whenever these USAFE alerts occurred, at least four KB-50Js were always on station at pre-briefed locations over the Central and Northern European continent to support the air-to-air refueling requirements of F-100, F-101, RB-66, and B-66 aircraft on simulated combat missions. Now, back to the Nouasseur air-to-air refueling story. The refueling orbit was established at about 20,000 feet between Sidi Slimane and Casablanca. Capt. Cleo McGovern and his crew were refueling F-100s on TDY at Nouasseur from a fighter base located somewhere in what was then the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). The first group of fighters to rendezvous with us were obviously very proficient in air-to-air refueling because they engaged the drogue immediately and with very little instruction from our refueling operators. These experienced pilots would hit the drogue on our left wing, then go to the tail drogue, and then progress to the drogue on our right wing in very rapid succession. The second groups of pilots to be refueled were less proficient but managed to refuel without the occurrence of significant problems. In this context, significant problems includes such items as:

(1)    the refueling hose becomes looped around the fighter’s wing and/or gets caught in the dive brakes;

(2)     the refueling drogue slamming sidewise against the fighter’s canopy with possible cracking of the canopy;

(3)     the inability of the fighter pilot to insert his refueling probe into the coupling of the drogue even with competent and repeated instructions of the KB-50J refueling operator; and

(4)     the fighter pilot yanking the entire refueling hose off the KB-50J’s refueling station.

 We sometimes wondered how these same F-100 pilots -- grossly deficient in air-to-air refueling skills -- ever managed to get across the "big pond". Flying non-stop across the Atlantic obviously required air-to-air refueling enroute. The refueling was conducted over Kindley Air Force Base, Bermuda and Lajes Air Base in the Azores Islands -- both locations on the way to destinations in Europe. The F-100 pilots who found they couldn’t complete this air-to-air refueling were compelled to land at these island bases to refuel and, in so doing, probably suffered some degree of humiliation from their comrades and personal embarrassment after they arrived late at their final destinations. Maybe transport aircraft of the Military Airlift Command flew these inexperienced F-100 pilots to their USAFE assignments and they were never required to fly an F-100 across the Atlantic to their bases in Europe -- at least at this time in their USAF careers. Whatever the reasons for their lack of training in air-to-air refueling, our calm and very competent air refueling operators did their best to get these fighter pilots trained and proficient. Sometimes, it appeared to be a futile exercise, as the following will attest. The first F-100 to be refueling in the third flight was an aircraft marked with three different squadron emblems on the tail. The aluminum skin on this aircraft had been shined to a brilliant sparkle. We assumed that the pilot of this F-100 aircraft was the Fighter Wing Commander or the Wing Vice Commander; however, this assumption immediately vanished when we witnessed the pilot’s refueling techniques. The pilot kept missing the drogue and, with rapid throttle adjustments kept over flying and under flying the drogue. Instructions from our refueling operator had little or no effect. Another more experienced F-100 pilot flying a short distance off the right wing also tried to help the pilot working our right refueling station but without much success. In what seemed to be a last ditch desperation attempt, this inexperienced F-100 pilot somehow hit the drogue hard and successfully with a quick acceleration of his aircraft. Inside the KB-50J, we heard what seemed like a muffled explosion. We immediately sensed danger. Our refueling operator immediately blurted out an expletive and reported, "There’s fire coming out both ends of his aircraft!" McGovern asked all crewmembers to check for damage to our KB-50J and quickly received a negative report from all of us. The refueling operator also reported an immediate surge in jet fuel flow pressure and that he had shut down all jet fuel going to the right refueling station. He quickly concluded that the F-100 pilot had cracked the metallic coupling in our drogue, the refueling hose had moved over in front of the nose of the F-100, and raw JP-4 had poured into the nose of the F-100’s jet engine air intake. This was, unquestionably, the cause of the muffled explosion, the fire coming out of the front and rear of the F-100, the subsequent F-100 engine compressor stall, and flameout of the engine. The F-100 dropped off our right refueling position, lost altitude rapidly, dropped out of sight, and we heard no more communications from this guy. We heard the other F-100 pilot, a short distance away, still in our sight, and off our right wing, state on his UHF radio, "Get your head out of your ass and attempt an air start." We heard no more from this F-100 flight or any other fighters for the remainder of our pre-briefed orbit duration. Upon completion of our briefed mission duration, we headed back to Nouasseur Air Base. While on final approach, we were contacted by the tower who advised us that Major "Doc" Blanchard, F-100 Fighter Squadron Commander, wanted to meet with us immediately after we taxied in and parked. I can’t recall the exact numerical designation of Blanchard’s fighter squadron but that’s of little importance now. McGovern, of course, acknowledged the tower operator’s request. As soon as we parked the aircraft and shut down the engines, we could see a rather large and sharp looking officer pull up to our aircraft in an open jeep. The officer got out of his jeep and introduced himself as Major Blanchard, Squadron Commander of the fighter squadron we had just refueled. This officer had the physique of an NFL fullback. Indeed, this same Major was none other than "Doc" Blanchard of the tremendously successful West Point football team at the end of World War II (1944-1945 timeframe). All of the "old-timers" and football "buffs" receiving this newsletter should recall the nicknames "Mr. Inside" and "Mr. Outside" which were applied by the media and radio sports announcers to "Doc" Blanchard and Glenn Davis during those great football years of the U.S. Military Academy. Blanchard was the fullback and Davis was, as I recall, the right halfback. When I saw Blanchard in his neat, starched summer khaki uniform, he looked like Charles Atlas, the famed body builder and weight lifter of that same era. Blanchard had a narrow waist in comparison to the rest of his body, a huge chest, and very broad shoulders. It was difficult for me to understand how a man the size of Blanchard could squeeze himself into an F-100 cockpit and fly the aircraft comfortably. He was mad as a hornet and blurted out that he was going to UR (i.e. file an Unsatisfactory Report on) the probe and drogue refueling system because this system was responsible for significantly damaging the Wing Commander’s F-100 aircraft. This same F-100 had been assigned to Blanchard’s squadron for maintenance. When we asked Blanchard for additional information about the damaged F-100, he said something like, "Your damn probe and drogue refueling system has popped 85% of all the rivets inside the F-100’s jet engine intake all the way from the canopy to nose of the aircraft and 65% of all the exterior rivets on the skin of the aircraft from the canopy to the nose. He stated that the pilot of this F-100 was unable to restart his engine but had successfully executed a "dead stick" landing at Nouasseur without destroying or crashing the aircraft. I thought to myself that this fighter pilot wasn’t as green as I had assumed. Blanchard stated the F-100 aircraft was in such bad condition that their Wing Maintenance Officer wouldn’t even clear the aircraft (with an engine replacement) for a one-time flight back to the depot at Chateroux (nicknamed "Shattered Rocks") Air Base, France for required overhaul. This F-100 would have to be disassembled and flown back to Chateroux in a large cargo transport aircraft. Blanchard added that his Wing Commander had flown his "personal" F-100 to Nouasseur the previous night and that he was still asleep in his quarters at the VOQ. Since the Wing Commander’s bird was ready for flight, it was designated as an "in commission" aircraft for the morning’s air-to-air refueling training. Blanchard was obviously worried about what his Wing Commander would think when he was informed about the status of his F-100. McGovern asked Blanchard if we could see the damaged F-100. Blanchard agreed and drove us that section of the hardstand where the aircraft was located. Rivet popping was evident everywhere that Blanchard had reported. This F-100 was truly a mess and probably turned out to be a very expensive and time-consuming overhaul job.  If Blanchard did file an Unsatisfactory Report (UR), we never heard about it at RAF Sculthorpe for the remainder of my tour. From our standpoint, we chalked up these three hours of air-to-air refueling over Morocco as just another successful but a truly extraordinary experience. Digressing again, two walls in our squadron "Stan Eval" office were decorated with several fighter probes that had broken off F-100 and F-101 aircraft. These probes had become stuck in the coupling of the drogue after breaking off the fighter aircraft. In these cases, the refueling hose was recoiled into the refueling reel with the fighter’s probe stuck in the drogue coupling and carried back to RAF Sculthorpe by the KB-50J. During the years I was assigned to the 420th Air Refueling Squadron, I can also recall two different missions over England where an F-100 pilot and an F-101 pilot had successfully engaged the drogue but then pulled the entire refueling hose off the refueling reel. The two hoses subsequently broke away from the fighters and fell to the ground below. In one of the incidents, at least 50 (perhaps more) of refueling hose fell into a British schoolyard during. The following weekend, our Base Commander gave all the children at that same school a "red carpet" tour of RAF Sculthorpe. This tour included visits to all the aircraft squadrons, a "walk through" or "climb in" (as applicable) of the many different types of aircraft on the base, and a free lunch at the Officers’ Club. In the other dropped hose situation, the hose fell into a dense forest and was never recovered (at least during my tour of duty with the 420th at RAF Sculthorpe). If you are wondering about how the author can remember all these details, I guess all I can say is that these were very impressionable years in my early Air Force flying career. I was assigned to the 420th Air Refueling Squadron after a few years of flying in TAC light jet bombers in the United States. The somewhat wild and risk-taking pilots in this TAC light bomber wing were cast from an entirely different mold than the far more experienced and more mature pilots I encountered in the 420th. I arrived at RAF Sculthorpe with about 2000 hours of navigator-bombardier flying time but having experienced five major aircraft accidents in CONUS based TAC aircraft (including two different bailouts). Before I got to know the many different pilots and co-pilots of the 420th and respect their outstanding flying proficiency, I was beginning to wonder if I would ever find an Air Force pilot that I could thoroughly trust with my life. There was never a doubt in my mind after my assignment with the 420th. My KB-50J aircraft commander, Capt. Cleo McGovern (current status and address unknown) was the finest pilot I have ever had the opportunity to serve. I hope someone out there can help me find this guy again after all these years. The vast majority of all the 420th Air Refueling Squadron’s aircraft commanders, co-pilots, navigators, flight engineers, and refueling operators were top-notch aircrew personnel. I felt very comfortable and safe flying with all of them. I am also aware that many of the squadron’s unsung heroes -- the guys we seldom saw and knew -- were in maintenance. They certainly kept these aging and many times modified B-50 airframes and subsystems flying, flying, and flying. A KB-50J aircraft, on permanent static display at the Air Force Museum, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is an aircraft that was assigned to the 420th during my tour at RAF Sculthorpe. Since I live in Fairborn, Ohio, which is very close to Wright-Patterson AFB, I have the opportunity to visit this old and dependable friend (an aircraft in which I flew 42 years ago) on a daily basis should I choose to do so. This old bird looks as good now as it did then. In early December 2000, I had the opportunity to discuss the story above with Lt. General George Rhodes, USAF (Retired), who lives nearby in my neighborhood. Rhodes has been retired for many years but still has a very keen mind. He is very well respected in the USAF and also in aerospace industry as a hard-core "loggie" and real expert in the repair and modification of aircraft. He also ran the Northrop Aircraft Company’s Dayton office for a number of years after he retired from the Air Force. As a Colonel in his USAF career, he was the commander of the depot at Chateroux Air Base, France -- which was the only maintenance and modification center for USAF aircraft in the USAFE area during the years I was assigned at Sculthorpe. This is the same depot I discussed in my story previously. Much later on in his career, he became the Vice Commander of what was then called the Air Force Logistics Command (AFLC) located at Wright-Patterson AFB. As you probably know, the Secretary of Defense directed the Air Force a few years ago to combine AFLC with the Air Force Systems Command (AFSC). The new merged organization was designated as the Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) with its headquarters located at Wright-Patterson and it remains that way today. After hearing my story about the F-100 pilot who experienced the engine explosion during refueling, Rhodes’ comments were: (1) for any pilot to "deadstick" an F-100 into a safe landing is a miracle in itself even he flames out right above the air base on which he wants to land (2) it’s also a miracle that the pilot wasn’t killed instantly when the explosion occurred because of engine parts being expelled outwards and up into the cockpit at tremendous velocities and energy; (3) the aircraft must have been damaged so badly (internally) that it was probably classified as a Class 26 accident; (4) the repairs (if deemed economically feasible) could have been done only in the USA where F-100 jigs and fixtures were available to repair/replace warped bulkheads caused by the explosion; and (5) "Yes, I knew "Doc" Blanchard and I can well understand why he would be upset."                          END