Hundreds of tankers, recon jets grounded in hunt for faulty tail pins
By Rachel S. Cohen and Stephen Losey
Wednesday, Feb 15
WASHINGTON — The Air Force is speeding up its hunt for a faulty component on hundreds of KC-135 Stratotankers that, if it failed in flight, could cause an aircraft’s tail to fall off.
Air Force Materiel Command on Tuesday directed maintainers to inspect the entire KC-135 aerial refueling fleet, as well as the RC-135 family of reconnaissance planes and the WC-135 Constant Phoenix radiation‐sensing jet, for potentially faulty tail pins before their next flight.
As of Sunday, 24 of the 90 KC-135s that were inspected had noncompliant pins, the Air Force said. Planes with the proper parts have been cleared to fly.
https://www.defensenews.com/news/your-air-force/2023/02/15/hundreds-of-tankers-recon-jets-grounded-in-hunt-for-faulty-tail-pins/
