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This National Guard Jet Is A Fueling Station In The Sky

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The 126th Air Refueling Wing has eight KC-135 Stratotankers. The planes can carry 33,000 gallons of fuel. (Maria Altman/St. Louis Public Radio)
The 126th Air Refueling Wing has eight KC-135 Stratotankers. The planes can carry 33,000 gallons of fuel. (Maria Altman/St. Louis Public Radio)

Scott Air Force Base in southern Illinois is celebrating its centennial this year. One of many missions carried out at the Midwestern base is in-flight refueling, which allows U.S. military aircraft to get anywhere in the world without stopping.

The Illinois National Guard's 126th Air Refueling Wing, assigned to the base, has flown more than 300 refueling missions since last December. St. Louis Public Radio's Maria Altman (@radioaltman) recently got a chance to go up in one of the wing's KC-135 Stratotankers.

This segment aired on July 27, 2017.

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