Operation presented as “proof of firm dedication of US and Portugal in dissuading potential threats”
A US stealth bomber refueled at Lajes miliary airbase on Terceira Island in the Azores on Tuesday without shutting off its engines.
According to a statement released by the US embassy, this method of refueling “allows for the loss of less time”.
The operation has been presented as proof of the “firm dedication of the United States and Portugal in dissuading potential threats, and reinforcing NATO”.
The bomber, a B2 Spirit – designed to be able to penetrate dense anti-air defences without being detected – is assigned to America’s Whiteman air base, in Missouri and made the flight to Lajes “for the first time”. (This does not mean other stealth bombers haven’t carried out this process previously, see photo caption).
The US communiqué described the refueling process as dubbed “hot pit”: the aircraft does not have to shut off engines completely to refuel, meaning it doesn’t have to go through the process of re-starting the engines once the fuel has been replenished.
As the statement went on, this operation underscored the commitment shared by the US and Portugal to reinforcing the NATO alliance.
The aircraft is understood to have been a month in the Keflavik airbase, in Iceland.
After its ‘hot pit’ refueling, it flew on to Whiteman.
Concluding its statement, the embassy said: “The ability of the US armed forces and equipment to collaborate harmoniously with allies and partners is fundamental in establishing a broad network of alliances and partnerships capable of decisively tackling the multifaceted challenges of today and the future”.
On the basis that ‘hot pit’ refueling at Lajes airbase is not new, the timing of this statement may have a lot to do with what has been going on on the wider stage in the context of non-allies of NATO.
Source material: Lusa
