McDonnell Douglas KC-10A Extender News Story at NMUSAF(April 2024)

This aircraft arrived at the museum on April 15, 2024 from its last duty station at Travis AFB, California.

The KC-10A Extender is a US Air Force advanced tanker and cargo aircraft whose primary mission is aerial refueling. Within the same mission, the KC-10 can refuel US and coalition forces aircraft using either a hose and drogue centerline refueling system or an advanced aerial refueling boom. KC-10s can also be refueled from another KC-10A or a KC-135.

The aircraft is configured to simultaneously carry military cargo and personnel. Since 1981, the KC-10 has been an important part of air fueling in times of war and peace, improving global mobility for US armed forces.

The KC-10A on display, serial number 84-0191, was instrumental in 1986 during Operation El Dorado Canyon, serving as the “mother ship” for USAF F-111s whose target was the command center for a Libyan terrorist network in Tripoli. For the first time since WWII, US aircraft took off from Royal Air Force bases in the United Kingdom for a bombing mission. The KC-10’s large fuel capacity allowed the strike force aircraft to refuel eight times during the mission. The raid proved the US’s capabilities for long-range precision strikes.