Front landing gear retracts on KC-135 parked at McConnell AFB. No injuries reported.

Front landing gear retracts on KC-135 parked at McConnell AFB

Appeared on Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook Page the photos in this post were taken on May 29, 2024 after the front landing gear retracted on a KC-135 Stratotanker parked at McConnell Air Force Base (AFB), Kansas.

No one was injured after the mishap, the US Air Force (USAF) said in a statement posted that evening on social media.

“Aircrew had disembarked prior to the incident. Two maintainers were on board the aircraft and three others were near the aircraft at the time of the incident, but no one was injured.”

The statement also said that McConnell’s emergency responders were on the scene.

“Today our Emergency Response Airmen put their training to this real-world test, and I am extremely proud of how they conducted themselves and performed their duties,” Col. Cory Damon, commander of the 22nd Air Refueling Wing, said in the statement. “Other flying operations at McConnell remain unhindered by this incident.”

According to Stars and Stripes, an investigation is ongoing.

McConnell AFB

McConnell AFB operates and maintains 18 KC-135’s and 24 KC-46’s supporting worldwide aerial refueling and airlift operations.

The 22 Air Refueling Wing (ARW) is the host wing at McConnell, with the Kansas Air National Guard 184th Wing and 931st Air Refueling Wing as primary tenants. McConnell AFB plays an integral role in the future of the USAF as it was the first base to receive the KC-46A Pegasus on Nov. 16, 2018.

McConnell AFB continues to interact with the surrounding community of Wichita through personal links with the city and on an economic level through jobs and services. There are few bases that can claim such a wide variety of weapons systems, missions, and skillsets as those that McConnell AFB has based since WWII. However, this is hardly the end of such an impressive history; the page turns to yet another chapter. Team McConnell serves as the nation’s first KC-46A operational base, fulfilling a critical mission and continuing McConnell AFB’s rich USAF heritage.