HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah – In honor of the Air Force Reserve’s 70th birthday coming up Saturday, two F-35A pilots from the 419th Fighter Wing participated in a media event April 7 with the 514th Air Mobility Wing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J.

Maj. Scott Trageser and Capt. Mark Tappendorf performed an F-35 aerial refueling over the Atlantic Ocean with help from KC-10s at the 514th AMW. They demonstrated their capabilities to members of the news media, who watched from aboard the tanker, and highlighted different flying missions within the Air Force Reserve.

These high-speed aerial refuels require extreme precision from both the pilots and the tanker’s boom operators, and are an essential part of long-distance military travel, whether across the country or across the ocean.

Two F-15C pilots from the 104th Fighter Squadron at Barnes Air National Guard Base, Mass., also performed midair refuels as part of the event.