Boom Aerial
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Boom Aerial
aerial refueling?
the entire world uses a drogue with a hose to refuel their aircraft in midair... how come the USAF uses a flying boom? shouldn't the drogue and hose require less coordination and therefore safer and easier? what advantages does the flying boom have over the hose-drogue system?
It's my understanding that the boom allows a much higher rate of fuel transfer than the baskets.
I think its also easier for the fueling pilot. They just line up on the lights behind the gas station and the boom pilot flys into you. The boom is easier to make fine maneuver corrections than the aircraft if it is chasing a bouncing basket.
Baskets also frequently give the refueling aircraft a bit of a beating. They bop around and whack into the aircraft before and after they plug in. Booms are more stable and predictable.
Honestly, the baskets have a lot of advantages:
- more than one fueling at a time if they're at wingtips
- lighter
- simpler
- you can fuel helicopters
- smaller aircraft can act as refuelers (don't need a rear-facing position)
If I were in the USAF driver's seat I would phase out the booms over time and standardize with the rest of NATO and the world and go for exclusively baskets.