Fairchild Air Force Base demonstrates rapid generation capabilities during Royal Flush

Tech. Sgt. Justin Salazar, a flying crew chief assigned to the 92nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, holds a “dead man switch” during a KC-135 Stratotanker hot-pit refueling operation as part of exercise Royal Flush at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, May 3, 2024. Operators use the dead man switch as a safety mechanism to shut off the fuel pump in case they become incapacitated during the fueling process. Royal Flush was a two-part Air Mobility Command readiness exercise that evaluated the ability to rapidly respond and execute mobility fundamentals and non-standard techniques to provide global mobility at a moment’s notice. During the second part of the exercise, Team Fairchild demonstrated the ability to rapidly deploy aircraft, cargo and personnel to an unfamiliar location and immediately resumed and sustained air refueling operations without traditional support elements. This exercise demonstrated how AMC forces prepare, posture and present ready air mobility forces to support national security objectives. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Ryan Gomez)