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Caption:
ISTRES, France (April 27, 2001) -- F-16s from Aviano Air Base, Italy,
drop away from the fuel boom after gassing up from a KC-135
Stratotanker over the Adriatic Sea. The jets were refueled by the New
Jersey Air National Guard's 108th Air Refueling Wing, McGuire Air Force
Base, N.J. The New Jersey unit arrived here April 25 for a month-long
deployment to fly aerial refueling operations in support of the ongoing
NATO operations in the Balkans, Operations Joint Forge and Joint
Guardian. U.S. refueling tanker aircraft based here refuel U.S. and
NATO aircraft flying air patrols over the Balkans. The 108th ARW is
part of the 16th Expeditionary Operations Group, a small U.S. Air Force
detachment located on this French air base. Air National Guard
refueling units take the lion's share of the rotational duty at Istres.
The 16th Expeditionary Operations Group is a unit of the 16th Air
Expeditionary Wing, U.S. Air Forces in Europe. (U.S. Air Force Photo by
Tech. Sgt. Dave Ahlschwede)
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