CDF aerial tanker

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Air Service tankers provide airborne refuelling and ferrying for the aircraft of Sober Thought's Air Service. The unarmed and unarmoured passenger transports must fly in secure airspace or be escorted by jet fighters. They come in three sizes, all based on airframes of the Community Defence Forces' T-60s series jet transports

Athough similar to the propeller driven tactical transports and even more similar to the jet strategic transports, airborne refuelling squadrons belong to a separate ordinal number sequence with all sizes of aircraft arbitrarily interfiled, e.g., 1st Tanker Squadron (TL-63), 5th Tanker Squadron (TL-62), 7th Tanker Squadron (TL-61). Three letter squadron codes are assigned at random within the class. For every wave per one hundred million national population, the Community Defence Forces raise two heavy, two medium and one light tanker squadrons.


Heavy tankers

In keeping with the Air Service standard, the commanding officer of a heavy tanker squadron is always a Chief Lieutenant, the executive officer a Lieutenant and the Squadron Sergeant a full Warrant Officer. The command staff also are augmented by enough troops to make a complete extra crew.

The squadron is equipped with TL-63s, which instead of carrying ~500 passengers carries copious amounts of aviation fuel. The high-octane fuel is carried in interconnected parallel tanks to minimise the risk of leaks and uneven distribution of the load; the effect of combat damage would be fatal regardless of the manner of storage. The rear fuselage has a retractable umbilical cord to connect with aircraft in flight, although the airplane could be used to merely ferry fuel from airport to airport. Silhouette and more technical details to follow.

There are nine aircraft divided into three airborne Flights. The flight crew is identical to the more popular TP-63 variant: pilot (Lieutenant or Vice Lieutenant), co-pilot (Vice Lieutenant), the navigator (Vice Warrant Officer or Leading Flier) and the flight engineer (Master Flier). The cabin crew is much smaller than with its passenger cousin, consisting of a Leading Flier, a Master Flier and two Fliers.

The Air Maintenance Flight is of average size, the lack of armament and ordnance being counterbalance by the presence of four engines and large size of the airframe itself. A Lieutenant and three Vice Lieutenants oversee the work of 86 other ranks.

The Supply Flight is very important, since the primary purpose of the squadron is liquid fuel supply. Hence there is a Lieutenant and a Vice-Lieutenant overseeing the work of 33 other ranks.

The Administration Flight is proportionate to the total number of aircrew in the squadron. A Lieutenant (the Squadron XO doesn't do double duty in this unit) and two Vice Lieutenants oversee the work of 67 other ranks, exclusive of the command staff. The Flight's medics, logisticians, clerks and administrative staff ensure people are promptly paid, well fed, suitably clothed, comfortably housed and kept in good health.


Medium tankers

Medium tanker squadrons are remarkably similar to their larger siblings and the command staff are identical, although it takes one fewer person to round out the extra crew. The squadron is equipped with TL-62s, which instead of carrying ~250 passengers carries aviation fuel in interconnected parallel tanks which can vent through a retractable umbilical cord in the air or valves on the ground. Silhouette and more technical details to follow.

In flight, the medium squadron apes the heavy squadron. There are the same nine aircraft (if significantly smaller in size and payload) divided into three airborne Flights. The flight crew of four is identical to the TL-62 and TP-62, but the cabin crew is reduced by one Flier in comparison to the TP-63.

On the ground, the medium squadron is more obviously scaled back. The Air Maintenance Flight is proportionate, with a Lieutenant and three Vice Lieutenants oversees the work of 86 other ranks. Likewise, the Supply Detachment has a Vice-Lieutenant overseeing the work of 24 other ranks. The Administration Flight has a Lieutenant and two Vice Lieutenants overseeing the work of 62 all ranks, exclusive of the extra crew headed by the command staff.


Light tankers

These are designed to operate on aircraft carriers and hence are organised into substantially stripped down squadrons of much smaller jet planes. Nevertheless, the command staff is identical to its more populous sibling squadrons flying much larger aircraft; however, it takes a only an additional Flier to complete the command staff's extra aircraft crew.

The squadron is equipped with TL-61s fixed with arrestor hooks and reinforced lift points. Instead of carrying ~50 passengers carries extra aviation fuel. In flight, it passes the high octane fuel through a retractable umbilical cord to other Carrier Air Group aircraft. Silhouette and more technical details to follow.

There are six aircraft (one per embarked FN-1 Fenella squadron) divided into two airborne Flights (one per fighter wing). The flight crew is identical to the more popular TP-61 variant with a pilot (Lieutenant or Vice Lieutenant) and co-pilot (Vice Lieutenant), but the cabin crew is much smaller than either a TP-61 or a TL-62 with a Master Flier and one Flier.

The ground crew for the carrier-based mini-squadron is small. The Air Maintenance Flight has a Lieutenant and a Vice Lieutenant for overseeing 58 other ranks, the Supply Detachment a Vice Lieutenant for 21, and finally the Administration Flight a full-time XO (supervised part-time by the Squadron XO) Vice Lieutenant for 29 all ranks.