Turkish pilots train on glass cockpit KC-135

AFSAT is the central management agency for all USAF-sponsored security assistance training, conducting a wide range of international partner training in the USA and globally. Headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph in Texas, alongside Air Education and Training Command, AFSAT trains more than 8,700 international students from 155 different countries in a typical year, with a training line value of $10.2 billion.

The training was required in order to qualify Turkish pilots to fly the first of seven newly upgraded aircraft back to Turkey. The Turkish Air Force has decided to upgrade its KC-135T Stratotankers to the latest ‘Block 45’ standard, with a new flight deck, incorporating state of the art LCD displays, a new radio altimeter, computer module updates, a new autopilot, and a digital flight director. The upgrade replaces some 63 parts, including high-maintenance or obsolete analogue instruments. USAF KC-135s which have undergone the Block 45 Upgrade have seen a significant increase in aircraft availability as a result of the modification, and has saved thousands of maintenance man hours per year.

A second Turkish Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is already undergoing the new modification, and the remaining aircraft in the fleet are expected to receive the update no later than 2023. The upgrade is being undertaken by Field Aerospace at Oklahoma City, in partnership with the USAF’s Mobility and Training Aircraft Directorate’s Legacy Tanker Division.