Cold War icon comes to McConnell

  • Published
  • By Steve A. Larsen
  • 22nd Air Refueling Wing historian
Team McConnell has a very historic jet on display at the East Gate. The jet we call "The Keeper of the Plains" was the first KC-135 to come off the Boeing production line in 1956. Another historic plane has joined to join us but with one major difference; this plane still flies.

The "Cherokee Rose" is about as historical an aircraft as one might find. Delivered to the United States Air Force in April of 1963, it was one of the last KC-135s ever produced. It was formally gained into the inventory in May of 1963 at Lockbourne Air Force Base, now Rickenbacker International Airport, Ohio.

Between 1963 and 1986 Cherokee Rose held a wide variety of assignments around the United States and the world. From Ohio, the jet deployed to U-Tapao Air Base, Thailand where it provided air refueling during the Vietnam War.

This jet currently continues to support operations in Southwest Asia as most of the KC-135 inventory does.

The plane's historic claim to fame came on Nov. 19, 1988, while assigned to its current station Robbins Air Force Base and the 19th Air Refueling Wing. On that day the Cherokee Rose set 16 different Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) "time to climb" records over five different altitudes. Four different flights with four different crews from four wings accomplished these records. Perhaps of greatest importance to Team McConnell was the first flight of the day, which also established the jet's first world record performance.

Major Rod Bell, the aircraft commander, along with Captain Jim Melancon, co-pilot, Captain Julie Keck, navigator, and Master Sgt. Stan Sears, boom operator of the 384th Air Refueling Squadron established a record of 10 minutes, 14.8 seconds to reach 12,000 meters in altitude carrying a weight load between 100,000 to 150,000 kilograms.

"There was really never any doubt as to whether or not we would set the record," Sergeant Sears remarked at the time.

Some contemporary documentation alludes to a two-fold purpose to establishing the records.

First and foremost, the conversion of A-models to R-models was still a relatively new modernization program. The first R-model KC-135 A/C #61-0293, had only rolled out of the Boeing's Wichita facility four years earlier in 1984. R-model conversion was an expensive re-engining program for what was already a twenty-year old fleet of aircraft.

So these record setting flight tests provided validation for the more powerful, fuel efficient, CFM-56 engines.

At the time, the 384 BMW commander Col. Phil Ford said "This shows the standards the KC-135R sets not only for the U.S. Air Force, but for the rest of the world as well."

General John Chain, then commander in chief of Strategic Air Command wrote Colonel Ford to tell him that his "...intense behind the scenes planning combined for a flawless presentation of the capabilities of the KC-135R."

It is doubtful this historic event happened just for the sake of it. This was very much meant to be a very public display of a greatly improved aircraft.

A possible secondary point to the record setting flights might well have been nothing more than good old-fashioned Cold War one upsmanship.

Both the United States and the Soviet Union frequently engaged in quid pro quo gamesmanship throughout the Cold War era. The Contrails noted at the time that not only were the records new for their weight classes but also pointedly noted that the McConnell crew's flight in the 10,000-150,000 weight class well surpassed records established in 1981 by the Soviet Union in an even lighter plane in a lower weight class, the YAK-42.

The bigger, heavier Stratotanker was still much faster than the YAK flying at less than half the weight.

As Sergeant Sears said then, "The amazing thing to me was that we beat their 45,000 to 60,000 kilogram records with our 100,000 to 150,000 weight class attempt. I think that in itself is a statement about the qualifications of the KC-135R's engines."

Team McConnell doubtless is pleased to add this historic cold warrior to the "Keepers of the Plains."