US, UK Air Forces Conduct First 'Hot Pit Refueling' Drill For F-35 Aircraft - Pentagon

US airmen and counterparts from the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force (RAF) have conducted their first "hot pit refueling" training drill, in which fuel tanks are topped off with the aircraft engines still running to get the jet back in the air as quickly as possible, the Department of Defense said in a press release on Friday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th July, 2019) US airmen and counterparts from the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force (RAF) have conducted their first "hot pit refueling" training drill, in which fuel tanks are topped off with the aircraft engines still running to get the jet back in the air as quickly as possible, the Department of Defense said in a press release on Friday.

"This was the RAF Marham Visiting Aircraft Servicing Section (VASS) team's first time refueling a US Air Force F-35A Lightning II in preparation for future partnership capabilities," the release said.

Service members from Hill Air Force Base in the United States trained RAF airman on a number of safety and troubleshooting procedures needed for hot pit refueling, including emergency shutdown procedures and personnel evacuation if something goes wrong, the release said.

The United States conducts frequent bilateral training drills, which prepare the US and forces of other NATO members to quickly deploy side by side, according to the release.