Bloglander

Inlander photographer Young Kwak is traveling with a crew from Fairchild Air Force Base to the Transit Center in Manas, Kyrgyzstan. Read his previous posts here.

In the late afternoon over northern Afghanistan, an F-16 pulls up behind a US Air Force 376th Expeditionary Operations Group KC-135 tanker based out of the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan.

Senior Airman Dave Fernandez guides the fueling boom, with a small nozzle tip, over to a receptacle on top of the fighter. After a few moments, the F-16 is latched onto the tanker. After a couple of minutes, the F-16 pulls away with a full tank and fades towards the horizon.

Nine times more and 22,000 gallons later, Shell 74 — the flight number given to this particular mission — heads back home to Manas. The whole mission takes about about seven hours, including flying to and from Manas.

Out of the four member crew used for this mission, three call the Spokane area home. Aircraft Commander and Captain Alex Denton, Co-Pilot and Captain Mike Dobbs and Boom Operator Senior Airman Dave Fernandez all belong to the 92nd Air Refueling Squadron at Fairchild Air Force Base. The fourth, Navigator Gene Croft, is from McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas.

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Young Kwak

(Left to right) 376th Expeditionary Operations Group Pilot and Captain Alex Denton, Co-Pilot and Captain Mike Dobbs, Boom Operator Senior Airman Dave Fernandez and Deputy Operations Group Commander and Navigator Lieutenant Colonel Gene Croft walk outside a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

376th Air Expeditionary Wing Command Chief Master Sergeant Gregory Warren stands in front of a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

376th Expeditionary Operations Group Deputy Operations Group Commander and Navigator Lieutenant Colonel Gene Croft speaks with a maintenance crew in front of a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

The crew of Shell 74, a 376th Expeditionary Operations Group refueling mission over Afghanistan speaks with a maintenance crew outside a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

376th Expeditionary Operations Group Pilot and Captain Alex Denton closes a panel on a KC-135

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Young Kwak

376th Expeditionary Operations Group Co-Pilot Captain Mike Dobbs looks towards the cabin inside a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

376th Expeditionary Operations Group Pilot and Captain Alex Denton flies a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

The Hindu Kush Mountains of Kyrgyzstan are photographed from a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

(Left to right) 376th Expeditionary Operations Group Pilot and Captain Alex Denton, Co-Pilot and Captain Mike Dobbs and Deputy Operations Group Commander and Navigator Lieutenant Colonel Gene Croft fly a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

376th Expeditionary Operations Group Boom Operator Senior Airman Dave Fernandez refuels an F-16 from a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

An F-16 is linked to a 376th Expeditionary Operations Group KC-135 during a refueling mission over Afghanistan.

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Young Kwak

376th Expeditionary Operations Group Boom Operator Senior Airman Dave Fernandez refuels an F-16 from a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

An F-16 approaches a 376th Expeditionary Operations Group KC-135 during a refueling mission over Afghanistan.

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Young Kwak

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Young Kwak

An F-16 flies over northern Afghanistan.

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Young Kwak

The Hindu Kush Mountains of Afghanistan are photographed from a KC-135.

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Young Kwak

A "Shell 77" memorial is photographed at the at the 376th Expeditionary Operations Group office, which was a K-135 that crashed in Kyrgyzstan on May 3, 2013. On board were three crew members: Captain Mark Tyler Voss, Captain Victoria "Tori" Ann Pinekney and Technical Sergeant Herman "Tre" Mackey III. Their home unit was the 92nd Air Refueling Squadron, based at Fairchild Air Force Base.