Emergency Alert: KC-135 Stratotanker Goes Missing Over Persian Gulf – Is It Related to Military Operations?

Translation result A U.S. aerial refueling tanker sent a distress signal during an operation and subsequently went missing, officials say.

On May 5 (local time), flight-tracking service Flightradar24 reported that a U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker transmitted the ‘7700’ emergency transponder code while airborne. The aircraft’s tracking signal was later lost.

The tanker was over the Persian Gulf near Iran when it declared an onboard emergency; its signal disappeared while it was over Qatari airspace.

Operating from Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates, the aircraft was supporting ongoing military operations in the Middle East.

Flight data show the plane circled for a period before beginning a descent in an apparent attempt to land. Officials have not confirmed the exact cause of the emergency and have not officially linked it to hostile action, Flightradar24 said.

Neither the Iranian government nor U.S. forces have publicly commented on the incident.

In March, an Iran-backed militia coalition calling itself the Iraq Islamic Resistance (IRI) claimed it had shot down a KC-135 in western Iraq. The group described the action as a measure to defend national sovereignty and airspace.

The KC-135 Stratotanker is the Air Force’s primary aerial refueling tanker. It is powered by four turbofan engines and refuels fighters, bombers and other military aircraft in flight. The airframe was developed from the Boeing 367-80 and is in the same family as the civilian Boeing 707.

The KC-135 has served with the Air Force for more than 60 years. In addition to aerial refueling, it can carry troops and cargo and perform aeromedical evacuation missions. Depending on configuration, it can transport roughly 37,600 kg (about 82,900 lb) of cargo or dozens of passengers and can embark medical teams to evacuate casualties.