Boeing RC-135

RC-135B

The as-delivered version of the RC-135.

The RC-135B was never used operationally, as it had no mission equipment installed by Boeing.

The entire RC-135B production run of ten aircraft was delivered directly to [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] in Baltimore, Maryland for modification and installation of mission equipment under the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] program.

Upon completion, the RC-135Bs were re-designated RC-135C.

RC-135C Big Team

Modified and re-designated RC-135B aircraft used for strategic reconnaissance duties, equipped with the AN/ASD-1 electronic intelligence ([Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]) system.

This system was characterized by the large 'cheek' pods on the forward fuselage containing the Automated ELINT Emitter Locating System (AEELS - not Side Looking Airborne Radar - SLAR, as often quoted), as well as numerous other antennae and a camera position in the refuelling pod area of the aft fuselage.

The aircraft was crewed by two pilots, two navigators, numerous intelligence gathering specialists, and airborne linguists.

When the RC-135C was fully deployed, SAC was able to retire its fleet of RB-47H Stratojets from active reconnaissance duties.

All ten continue in active service as either RC-135V Rivet Joint or RC-135U Combat Sent platforms.

RC-135D Office Boy / Rivet Brass


The RC-135Ds, originally designated KC-135A-II, were the first reconnaissance configured C-135's given the 'R' MDS designation, although they were not the first reconnaissance-tasked members of the C-135 family.

They were delivered to Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska in 1962 as part of the Office Boy Project.

Serial numbers were 60-356, 60-357, and 60-362. The aircraft began operational missions in 1963.

These three aircraft were ordered as KC-135A tankers, but delivered without refueling booms, and known as "falsie C-135As" pending the delivery of the first actual C-135A cargo aircraft in 1961.

The primary Rivet Brass mission flew along the northern border of the Soviet Union, often as a shuttle mission between Eielson and [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], Oxfordshire, and later [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], Suffolk, UK.

The RC-135D was also used in Southeast Asia during periods when the RC-135M (see below) was unavailable.

In the late 1970s, with the expansion of the RC-135 fleet powered by TF33 turbofan engines, the RC-135Ds were converted into tankers, and are currently in the fleet as KC-135Rs.

RC-135E Lisa Ann / Rivet Amber

Originally designated C-135B-II, project name Lisa Ann, the RC-135E Rivet Amber was a one-of-a-kind aircraft equipped with a large [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] phased-array radar system.

Originally delivered as a C-135B, 62-4137 operated from [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].

Its operations were performed in concert with the RC-135S Rivet Ball aircraft (see below).

The radar system alone weighed over 35,000 pounds and cost over USD$35 million (1960 dollars), making Rivet Amber both the heaviest C-135-derivative aircraft flying and the most expensive Air Force aircraft for its time.

The radiation generated by the radar was sufficient to be a health hazard to the crew, and both ends of the radar
compartment were shielded by thick lead bulkheads.

This prevented the forward and aft crew areas from having direct contact after boarding the aircraft.

The system could track an object the size of a soccer ball from a distance of 300 miles (480 km), and its mission was to monitor Soviet [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] testing in the reentry phase.

The power requirement for the phased array radar was enormous, necessitating an additional power supply.

This took the form of a podded General Electric J-85 turbojet engine in a pod under the left inboard wing section, driving a generator dedicated to mission equipment.

On the opposite wing in the same location was a podded heat exchanger to permit cooling of the massive electronic
components on board the aircraft. T

his configuration has led to the mistaken impression that the aircraft had six engines.

On June 5, 1969, [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] from Shemya to Eielson, and no trace of the aircraft or its crew was ever found.