Is 1A0X1 (In-Flight Refueling Specialist) a Good AFSC?
United States Air Force · Air Force Specialty Code
Quick Facts — 1A0X1 (In-Flight Refueling Specialist)
AIT / Training
8 weeks
Training Location
Altus AFB, OK
Career Field
Aircrew
Verdict: Not enough data
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Score Breakdown
About 1A0X1 In-Flight Refueling Specialist
Operates boom and drogue air refueling systems aboard KC-135, KC-46, and other tanker aircraft. Transfers fuel to receiver aircraft in flight, extending the range and endurance of the entire force.
8 weeks
Altus AFB, OK
Aircrew
Recruiter vs. Reality
What the Recruiter Says
You will lie on your stomach in the back of a KC-135 or KC-46 and plug a metal pipe into a fighter jet doing 400 miles per hour at 30,000 feet. That sentence is not a metaphor. It's one of the most unique jobs in any military on Earth, it pays flight pay on top of your base salary, and you'll see more of the world from the back of a tanker than most people see in a lifetime. The Air Force will also ruin you for every other branch — you'll expect food that doesn't require a spoon and a room that isn't a tent.
What It's Actually Like
The boom pod is objectively cool for the first dozen sorties. Then it's just uncomfortable, cold, and smells like a combination of JP-8 and the previous crew's lunch. You'll spend more time TDY than home, which sounds adventurous until you've been away for three weeks and you're in Moron Air Base, Spain, which is not as exciting as the name implies. KC-135s are older than your parents and the new KC-46 has had its own very public growing pains. Flight pay is real. The back problems that develop from lying prone in a boom pod for 12-hour missions are also real. The camaraderie in a tanker squadron is genuine — you suffer together at weird hours and that bonds people in ways garrison duty never could.