Boeing EC-135A Stratotanker
After the USAF adopted the KC-135A Stratotanker as its primary air refueling platform, the basic 707-style design was found to have plenty of applications to other roles as well. A number of C-135As were built as fast transports, though these proved to be a disappointment, due to their inability to handle outsize cargo loads (a reason why the C-141 Starlifter and C-5 Galaxy were built). Their comparative speed, capacity, and range made them good aircraft for conversion to other rolesl. This led to a dizzying number of variants--the EC-135 electronic warfare/command post aircraft, OC-135 reconnaissance aircraft, RC-135 strategic reconnaissance aircraft, WC-135 weather reconnaissance aircraft, TC-135 trainers, and VC-135 executive transports.
This EC-135A was an airborne command post for the 28th Bomb Wing, based at Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota. In case of a nuclear attack, the command staff of the 28th BW would get aboard this aircraft and fly away from the base, allowing them to coordinate the wing's B-52s (and later B-1s) strikes on the Soviet Union. This was similar to the EC-135Cs based at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, which would serve as airborne command posts for Strategic Air Command under the codename Looking Glass, and the President's E-4 National Emergency Airborne Command Post (NEACP, also known as Kneecap) based at Andrews AFB.
I apologize for the quality of the picture; this is a scan of an old photo I took with a Kodak Disc camera. It was taken at one of Malmstrom AFB's last airshows, in 1990. 61-0297 was in the twilight of her career; she would be retired in 1992 to AMARC in Arizona, where what's left of her remains. Note the old SAC stripe on the fuselage.
Boeing EC-135A Stratotanker
After the USAF adopted the KC-135A Stratotanker as its primary air refueling platform, the basic 707-style design was found to have plenty of applications to other roles as well. A number of C-135As were built as fast transports, though these proved to be a disappointment, due to their inability to handle outsize cargo loads (a reason why the C-141 Starlifter and C-5 Galaxy were built). Their comparative speed, capacity, and range made them good aircraft for conversion to other rolesl. This led to a dizzying number of variants--the EC-135 electronic warfare/command post aircraft, OC-135 reconnaissance aircraft, RC-135 strategic reconnaissance aircraft, WC-135 weather reconnaissance aircraft, TC-135 trainers, and VC-135 executive transports.
This EC-135A was an airborne command post for the 28th Bomb Wing, based at Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota. In case of a nuclear attack, the command staff of the 28th BW would get aboard this aircraft and fly away from the base, allowing them to coordinate the wing's B-52s (and later B-1s) strikes on the Soviet Union. This was similar to the EC-135Cs based at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, which would serve as airborne command posts for Strategic Air Command under the codename Looking Glass, and the President's E-4 National Emergency Airborne Command Post (NEACP, also known as Kneecap) based at Andrews AFB.
I apologize for the quality of the picture; this is a scan of an old photo I took with a Kodak Disc camera. It was taken at one of Malmstrom AFB's last airshows, in 1990. 61-0297 was in the twilight of her career; she would be retired in 1992 to AMARC in Arizona, where what's left of her remains. Note the old SAC stripe on the fuselage.