A Day in the Life : KC135 Pilot

I’m very excited to help bring information about this lifestyle to other WAFS who are curious about Tanker life. A little background: I met my husband in highschool, yep we’re highschool sweethearts. We were stationed in Columbus, Mississippi for UPT (Undergraduate Pilot Training). We regularly joke that we didn’t choose the Tanker life, the Tanker life chose us. Following UPT, I went with him to Atlus for his follow up training in the KC-135.

The Tanker squadron here in the UK has been absolutely amazing. At Mildenhall you get a great location and a tight knit community. The isolation that comes with living in another country really pushes people together to take care of each other and check in. After being here for a few days, while quarantining due to Covid, we had groceries waiting for us and people within the squadron had signed up to bring us home cooked meals. I felt so welcomed. I felt like people actually cared that we were new to the squadron. It’s these feelings that I keep in mind when I’m feeling homesick. We even had something similar set up for us after our son was born. There is just about a Facebook page for anything out here to help find your community: yard sale, baby-sitters, PCSing with pets/pet-sitters, new mom, playgroup, breastfeeding. 

Living overseas is a challenge. We may struggle to get our phone company to take our monthly payment or can’t understand our utilities company because they’re Scottish, but we also get to go apple picking at Sandringham Estate and have the Prince of Wales ride up on his four-wheeler with his kids! It was such a unique experience to say the least. There are highs and lows with an overseas assignment. Working overseas, especially off base, can be difficult to achieve. There are always great opportunities to work on base and the visa office can help you to get the right paperwork together to work off base. It’s amazing to have travel right at our fingertips and public transportation helps make it so accessible, but your travel plans can change in an instant. I have to remind myself that we are one of the closest bases. We are the first ones called because of this, as we saw with the crisis in Afghanistan and Ukraine. You never know if the mission refueling Italian fighters will turn into a week in Germany or a sudden standard deployment (2-3 months). But don’t worry, the community here has a tight hold on you no matter what is happening in the rest of the world.

My best advice is that no matter how well you plan or how much research you do, no matter what you expect or hope for, the unexpected can come and usually will. Sometimes you’re never as ready as you think you are, but take it one day at a time. We are all just trying our best with what we have and I guarantee there is another WAF out there who is experiencing what you are. Give yourself grace and reach out if you need.

Cheers!