At around 10:00 PM eastern US time last night, Sunday, June 15, 2025, a total of about twenty-seven (27) KC-135 and other types of air refueling tanker aircraft, took off from multiple US military bases, headed toward Europe.
Below is a partial list of the aircraft that went:
The movement of U.S. tanker aircraft to Europe in June 2025 likely supports NATO exercises "DEFENDER 25" and/or "Atlantic Trident 25", from June 16-27 in Finland, involving U.S., U.K., French, and Finnish air forces, with confirmed KC-135 tanker participation for aerial refueling.
By any measure, this is an extraordinary number of air-refueling tankers all moving at what appears to be "the last minute." Such aircraft are generally the last to go, and they arrive in-theater as an operation is already set to go.
So when these planes landed overnight, they did so very close to "Go" time.
UPDATE:
Two tankers landed at Aviano Air Base in Italy and three landed in Spain around 3:45 AM EDT this morning.
Four new Pegasus tankers left NJ in the last hour making it a second wave of tankers different than the first 27 I counted but they appear to all be going to different places in Europe for the next few hours.
In the end the result will be the same and he who has the most aircraft with fuel will be much more deadly than missiles coming in.
For every missile that Iran has shot, the US has the same thing in a reusable fighter bomber hence the world's largest refueling fleet besting the rest of the world combined many times over.
The earliest these tankers can be used would be 10:00 AM EDT after flight servicing and possible fueling of the tankers themselves.
UPDATE 7:18 PM EDT --
The number of tanker aircraft that took off from their home base overnight, after the takeoff of the planes from New Jersey, increased to 32.
A significant number of these aircraft were sent to Moron Air Base in Spain, the rest to the UK, Germany, Italy, and one to Estonia. Several aircraft were sent to the CENTCOM area of responsibility which is the Middle East.
In the context of the rather unusual air activity, there are suggestions that the planes were heading to Europe to take part in the Atlantic Trident 25 exercise, which is scheduled to involve 40 aircraft from the US, UK, French and Finnish air forces. You don't sent 32 refueling tankers to a military exercise for 40 aircraft.
The following two points may indicate the opposite version: the almost simultaneous take-off of such a significant number of tankers, which is not required for the exercises, and Spain as the final destination of the route.
Spain is noteworthy because American strategic bombers flying to the Middle East usually fly across the Atlantic to the Mediterranean through the Strait of Gibraltar and on into the region. In this way, they remain in international airspace the entire way, without notifying European countries.
Hal Turner Opinion
I will not rush to make statements about plans to involve American strategic aviation in the Israeli operation or about joining tankers to refuel Israeli aviation, but the activity is interesting. It is almost as if the US has decided on a direct confrontation with Russia over Ukraine, and is sending this vast refueling capability to Europe for that precise purpose. Of course, that is mere speculation on my part.
Let us just add the news about the beginning of the movement of the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) carrier strike group from the ITR to the Middle East.
