Air Force
157th Air Refueling Wing puts on a show in El Salvador
Stars and Stripes
February 20, 2024
A six-person crew from the 157th Air Refueling Wing, New Hampshire Air National Guard, performs a flyover in a KC-46 Pegasus at the Ilopango Air Show, Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, in El Salvador. (Charles Johnston/U.S. Air National Guard)
They wanted a show in El Salvador. So the 157th Air Refueling Wing delivered.
A six-person crew from the 157th ARW treated thousands of spectators to KC-46 flyovers Saturday and Sunday at the Ilopango Air Show in El Salvador, according to a New Hampshire National Guard news release.
“They said ‘Come down low and give us a show,’ ” 1st Lt. Taylor DiRocco said.
Pilots dropped to an estimated 1,000 feet in their state-of-the-art refueler over throngs of visitors.
The aerial passes were in conjunction with a New Hampshire National Guard-El Salvador state partnership visit that included senior leadership meetings, donation of personal protective equipment and a Humvee mechanic exchange.
Also, eight soldiers from the Hampshire National Guard’s 39th Army Band performed two hour-long performances during the event.
“It’s a way to contribute,” said Lt. Col. Paulo Morales, air crew commander. “It’s part of our state partnership mission to collaborate.”
The 157th ARW flies the KC-46A aerial refueling platform, operating out of Pease Air National Guard Base in Portsmouth, N.H.
Thousands of spectators converge on the Ilopango International Airport, Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, in El Salvador. (Charles Johnston/U.S. Air National Guard)
From left, Tech. Sgt. Christian Sadousky and Senior Airman Nate Forster, crew chiefs with the 157th Air Refueling Wing, inspect a KC-46 refueler shortly after landing on Feb. 16, 2024, in El Salvador. (Charles Johnston/U.S. Air National Guard)
From right, 157th Air Refueling Wing Command Chief Master Sgt. Kevin Reither and Maj. Gen. David Mikolaities, New Hampshire adjutant general, present Col. Pablo Soriano, chief of the Salvadoran Air Force, a framed print of a KC-46 aircraft Feb. 17, 2024, at the Ilopango Air Show in El Salvador. (Charles Johnston/U.S. Air National Guard)
Maj. Luke Huebener, left, and 1st Lt. Taylor DiRocco of the 157th Air Refueling Wing pilot a KC-46 Pegasus from Pease Air National Guard Base to El Salvador on Feb. 16, 2024, for a State Partnership Program visit. (Charles Johnston/U.S. Air National Guard)
