The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has declared that it has conducted the longest, non-stop RAAF flight on record: a 23.3-hour flight on the KC-30A.
The KC-30A flew from RAAF Base Amberley to Jerez, Spain, in 23.3 hours, with two refueling brackets supplied by a second RAAF KC-30A.
The KC-30A is the Australian designation for the Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT), an aerial refueling and transport aircraft derived from the commercial A330 airliner.
The record-breaking flight consisted of 21 RAAF personnel, with five pilots rotating to share fatigue load.
As part of a week-long interoperability exercise with French Air and Space Force’s (FASF) 31 Aeronautical Technical Support Squadron, RAAF’s 33 Squadron traveled to Istres, France, to participate in air-to-air refueling and maintenance exchange activities.
“We were able to successfully manage both flight endurance and aircrew fatigue to achieve the maximum result,” Flight Lieutenant Elliott Hyder, one of the five pilots, said in a statement.
“Myself and one other pilot, 33 Squadron’s FASF exchange pilot Squadron Leader Kevin Theatre, flew the local flight with the FASF [Rafales]. Other than that, our role was to support the maintenance and logistics crews on deployment, which was the main focus,” Hyder added.
33 Squadron Aviation Technician Corporal Anthony Everitt has declared the exchange to have been a valuable experience.
“RAAF 33 Squadron maintenance, logistics and quality specialists worked alongside their French counterparts to understand each other’s processes, share lessons learnt, and build the friendship initially started during Pitch Black 2024 earlier in the year,” Everitt said.
He added: “We operate under a similar regulatory structure, which makes understanding the training and authorisation of each other’s maintenance procedures much easier.”
On the return journey to RAAF Base Amberley, the RAAF KC-30A was refueled by both an RAAF KC-30A and a FASF A330 MRTT, enhancing interoperability between the two nations.
