Thread by @steffanwatkins

🇨🇦 The Royal Canadian Air Force participated in #ExREDFLAG 22-1 at #EielsonAFB, Alaska at the end of April. Did we see that when it happened?

The pictures weren't posted until today because OPSEC? 🤔

I don't recall the #RCAF mentioning it at all; do you?
dvidshub.net/image/7172031/…

#401Sqn flies out of #4WingColdLake, we should see a refueller between the Alaska and Cold Lake around there. Possibly additional logistics flights for support staff.

FYI, I often do these threads without looking up if I can find something so you can see how the sausage is made.

If I start looking for where RCAF tankers were on 2022-04-01, we see the return flight by #4WingColdLake fighters from California, where they spend most of the winter because Cold Lake is.. well.. it's Cold, yo!

Notice they're using AR-4B to refuel on 2022-04-02.
#CFC3329

More #RCAF CF-188 Hornets came back from Marine Corps Air Station Miramar #MCASMiramar around 2022-04-08, with CC-150T 15004 providing fuel as callsign #CFC3338 still using AR-4B.
#C2B3C3

Is 15005 laid up? I'll need to see where they were last spotted, 15004 seems to be doing a lot of heavy lifting alone.

On 2022-04-22 it looks like #RCAF CC-150T 15004 could have ferried CF-188s from #3WingBagotville to #ExRedFlag 22-1 too.
#CFC3330 #C2B3C3

🇨🇦 #RCAF CC-150T 15004 looks like they were ferrying more fighters on 2022-04-25, and returned to #8WingTrenton on 2022-04-26.
#CFC3330

globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=c2b3c3,c…

The #RCAF secret weapon/red-headed-step-child is the CC-130H(T); a Hercules decked out for air-to-air refuelling that should have already been retired by now, but there isn't anything else to replace them yet, so they keep on truckin'

130339 #C2AF27
130340 #C2AF95
130341 #C2AF9F

I didn't see a CC-150T returning to pick up the aircraft from #ExRedFlag, so they could have been flying with #USAF refuelling support, or used one of the CC-130HTs that frequently accompany them to their winters in Cali (I wasn't joking about that; Hornets are snowbirds.) 🤷

.@RadarBox24 suggests 15005 landed in Montréal for "a little work" back on 2021-09-20, reducing the #RCAF's capacity to refuel their own CF-188s internationally by 50% since then.

Was that really the last time they were heard from? 😬

radarbox.com/data/registrat…

Clicking through #ADSBexchange for a second source to confirm... I don't see any activity from 15005 since September 2021. I hope they're deep cleaning the carpets at least.
#CFC3151 #C2B37D
globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=c2b37d&l…

Published 2018-08-22
"The current fleet of two CC-130H Hercules refuellers and two CC-150 Airbus Polaris aircraft are reaching the end of their service lives. The Hercules aircraft will be retired in 2020 and no replacement has been announced."
rusi-ns.ca/refuelling-rca…