Quote:
Originally Posted by daepp
I've heard from a former KC135 pilot that that maneuver was very difficult. Hard to get the 112 cylinder tanker to fly fast enough and the jets to fly slow enough.
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Especially with F-104s on the hoses. They would perform a "toboggan" maneuver which means the tanker would, weather and etc. permitting, enter into a shallow descent to get a few extra knots--but not over-speed the tanker--and allow the fighters to hang in there during upload. (I flew the KC-135R for five years.)
Here's a KB-50 bomber, converted to tanker, with the same 112 cylinders and two J-47 jets dragging a pair of F-104C Starfighters. Note the difference in angle-of-attack. The 104 had a "kicker" that would 'kick' the control stick forward if the jet approached a high-speed stall condition. The 104 jocks often overrode the kicker to stay on the hose.
