SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --
Airmen from the 4th Logistics Readiness Squadron participated in a
first-time military testing of a new Isometrics R-11 Refueler Unit May 16, 2016, at
Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina.
The Airmen conducted fueling operations on F-15E Strike Eagles and KC-135 Stratotankers to assisted the designers field testing and trail runs of the newly designed refueling
truck.
“What this Isometrics R-11 does is it brings R-11 and R-12
capabilities with one unit,” said Tech. Sgt. Justin Davis, 4th LRS non-commissioned
officer in charge of the fuels service center. “It can take 6,000 gallons of
fuel out to the flightline, but it can also be hooked into the ground and pump
fuel straight into the aircraft. Essentially, it does both things that two
separate vehicles do.”
The new Isometrics R-11 Refueling Unit is more cost
efficient, costing approximately $40,000 per truck compared to the current
refueling units in use. Currently, there are plans to distribute around 150
trucks Air Force-wide.
Not only does the Isometrics R-11 do the job of the current
refueling units, it incorporates new safety features for the user.
“They wanted to make things better from a safety and fuel consumption
aspect; it’s the most self-sufficient unit that the Air Force has ever seen as
far as fuel capabilities are concerned,” Davis said. “It eliminates a lot of
operator error. You basically select what type fuel servicing you want to do
with just the turn of a knob. It’s more simplified and efficient.”
Parking and side sensors on the Isometrics R-11 inform the
driver whether they are too close to an object using light signals and an alarm
system.
“It completely regulates the throttle itself, so you’re not
burning up a bunch of extra fuel when you’re trying to complete the servicing
operation,” Davis said. “It drastically cuts down the amount of diesel fuel
consumption that the vehicle is using.”
“It took 10 years to get it off the ground from that first
concept to where it is now,” said Mike Nelson, Air Force Petroleum Agency
operations director. “It’s way more efficient than the other truck. The other truck
can filter the fuel as it’s coming out of the hydrant adapter to the airplane,
but it wasn’t filtering when it went from the hydrant adapter to the truck.
This one, we are also filtering the fuel as it goes back into the tank.”
Davis also expressed his and the 4th LRS Fuels Management
Flight’s excitement about the opportunity to assist the AFPET Agency and
Isometrics teams with the new R-11 testing in its first operational
environment.
“This refueling unit could potentially be the most versatile
fleet addition to date, and the entire petroleum, oil, and lubricants fuels lab
community is anxiously awaiting its full release,” said Davis. “The tests
conducted assisted the manufacturer and government by providing vital aircraft
refueling pressure data that will allow future production vehicles to be
programmed to service aircraft more efficiently.”
“I believe that this is going to be the 21st
century refueling vehicle for military and commercial vehicle,” Nelson said. “I
think once everybody sees this thing and once we get it fine-tuned and
operating the way we envision it would operate, this is what everybody’s going
to be using for both military and commercial aviation.”