Another upgraded Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker has been redelivered to the Turkish Air Force after completing an upgrade to Block 45.1 standard in the US.
The aircraft arrived back at Incirlik Air Base – home of the 10th Tanker Base Command – in southern Turkey on October 17. The serial number is unconfirmed, as it has been censored on the picture that was released by the Turkish Ministry of Defence (MOD).
All seven of Turkey’s KC-135R are being upgraded, with the last scheduled for redelivery in 2023. The first was redelivered on September 5, 2021, after the work had been completed at Field Aerospace in Oklahoma City. The modifications are the same as those for the similar US Air Force (USAF) KC-135R upgrade. This includes a complete remodelling of the flight deck with new liquid crystal displays, radio altimeter, computer module updates, autopilot and a digital flight director. It comprises the replacement of 63 parts, including obsolete, high-maintenance analogue instruments.
The Turkish upgrade is being led as a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme by the USAF/Mobility and Training Aircraft Directorate’s Legacy Tanker Division.
