The Alpha & The Omega of Aerial Refueling
When we reflect upon well known government contractors in the defense industry, typically glowing reputations don’t come to mind. There’s Blackwater (now known as Academi), the private security company contracted by the government work in Iraq and their controversial and often violent tactics. And of course the giant that is Halliburton, who always finds itself well-positioned to profit from government contracts during times of conflict.
I’d like to highlight a government-contracted service provider that demonstrates a notable success story. This particular company has been a trusted partner of the U.S. Navy for many years and has clearly brought value worth continuing: Omega Air Refueling!
As a civilian who works in sales & marketing, I’m fascinated by Omega. The relationship and tenure they’ve established in a historically challenging arena is both impressive and unique, all while simultaneously building their own fleet of aircraft. Leaning on the private sector and leveraging the assets they offer could potentially free up government resources rendering Omega a poster child for what could be.
A screen shot from video “Australian Hornet Ball 2014," showing an Omega Air KC-707-3 refueling an F/A-18.
Omega’s beginnings date back to the 1980’s with two brothers who genuinely thought outside the box. While exploring DoD studies, Ulick and Desmond McEvaddy, both aviation entrepreneurs, found a budget request by the Navy for a commercial air-to-air refueling resource. The brothers realized there was a niche to fill and nobody around to fill it. Enter stage left: Omega Air Refueling!
Of course it wasn’t as simple as that. Many years were spent planning and preparing to essentially build an airline from scratch, necessitating a considerable fortune of funding. And not just funding for tangible assets, either. The manpower required to fly, maintain, schedule, etc., are significant and costly. Let’s take a look at the Omega fleet they have developed thus far.
N707MQ - a Boeing 707-3 operated by OARS departing March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, CA.
N707MQ
A Boeing 707-368C, this airframe was acquired by Omega on February 6, 2005. Coming off the manufacturing line as #925 and being assigned serial number 21368, she made her first flight on June 20, 1977 with Saudi Arabian Airlines. Omega purchased and refitted the aircraft to operate with two hose and drogue systems to accommodate the Navy and the service contracts.
This specific tanker has had cameos in most of the videos in the ‘Video Inspo’ section of the site. In addition to servicing the thirsty birds of the United States Navy, Omega astutely did not limit themselves to the U.S. defense market. They’ve inked aerial refueling service agreements with the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal Air Force, and the Finnish Air Force.
N707MQ refueling U.S. Navy jets from VFA-201
Photo from Omega website
N974VV - a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-40 operated by OARS departing March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, CA.
N974VV
A McDonnell Douglas DC-10-40, originally delivered to Japan Airlines in April 1979 as line #274 and serial number 46974, entered the Omega fleet in April 2006. Faithfully serving JAL for 26 years, she was briefly owned by Vivaldi Overseas before Omega took possession in 2006. Re-designated as a KDC-10/MPTT and equipped with two pod assemblies (one under each wing), the addition of this bird gave Omega the added ability to refuel two jets simultaneously.
N974VV providing simultaneous operations with a pair of RAF Tornados
Photo from Omega website
N264DE
Delivered to Martinair in December 1978, this McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 experienced life under multiple owners and leases before meeting her new life with Omega. It appears Martinair owned her until 1995, leasing the aircraft to Garuda Indonesia for a majority of that time. KLM and World Airways were able to sneak in the mix, too. Then, in 1995, the Royal Netherlands Air Force took ownership and repurposed her for the role of tanker/transport. Dutifully fulfilling this role for 25 years, N264DE entered the Omega fleet in 2020 and brought boom refueling to their growing quiver of capabilities.
Here’s a fun fact directly from the Omega Air Refueling website FAQ section: “The KDC-10 boom tanker is a KDC-10-30 with the same boom as mounted on a USAF KC-10 except it is controlled through a Remote Aerial Refueling Operator station at the front of the aircraft.” That was news to me!
N264DE
Photo from Omega website
Although there are currently three OARS tankers operating to meet the needs of their contracts, Omega is well poised for growth with 3 additional aircraft sitting in storage. It’s important to remember that OARS is not the government with an endless cash flow, so maintaining tankers with no missions to fly (ie. no revenue to generate) would likely place a massive financial burden on a private company. Keeping the aircraft in storage allows them to more rapidly accommodate new customers or contracts, as opposed to starting from scratch, while not being saddled with the costs of maintaining active air frames. Here are some details about the fleet in storage:
Google Maps screenshot of a storage ramp containing several 707’s at Brunswick Golden Isles Airport in Brunswick, GA
N623RH: A Boeing 707-338C, serial #19623, came off the line as #671 in 1968. Delivered to Qantas in May 1968, she had several other commercial operators before her conversion to an MRTT role with the Royal Austrian Air Force in 1983. She lived down under all the way until 2011 when N623RH entered the Omega fleet. From my research, it appears this aircraft is in storage at Brunswick Golden Isles Airport in Brunswick, GA.
N623RH in storage in Brunswick, GA
Photo by Brian T. Richards: https://www.jetphotos.com/registration/N623RH
N624RH: A Boeing 707-338C, also manufactured in 1968, serial #1624. Pretty incredible that Omega owns two consecutively produced 707’s well over 30 years later!
Back in 2015, this aircraft suffered an engine failure shortly after departing Pt. Mugu. Engine #1 was exhibiting several issues that caused the crew to constantly reduce or eliminate power to the engine. In the words of the NTSB Factual Report, “While the throttle was being retarded, a vibration began that became severe within a few seconds. The pilots shutdown the No. 1 engine, declared an emergency, and requested to divert to the Victorville Airport (VCV), Victorville, California. The mechanics who were on board the airplane could see the No. 1 engine vibrating on the pylon as well as smoke and debris trailing out of the engine's exhaust. The airplane landed at VCV without further incident. The post-landing examination of the No. 1 engine revealed a hole in the bottom of the nacelle and several holes in the turbine exhaust case.” Shortly thereafter, she was ferried to Golden Isles Airport in Brunswick, GA where she remains today.
N629RH: A Boeing 707-338C manufactured in 1968 that came off the line as #737, and the assigned serial number 19629. Originally delivered to Qantas, she spent a good deal of time with British Caledonian Airways, and Worldways Canada. In 1983, the Royal Australian Air Force took possession and converted N629RH into an MRTT role. She entered the Omega fleet in 2011 and currently sits in storage at… you guessed it… Golden Isles Airport.
The N707AR Flight 70 Accident
On May 18, 2011, a 707 owned and operated by Omega suffered an engine separation mere moments after rotation (20 feet of altitude to be precise). The #2 engine fully separated from it’s mount and proceeded to make contact with engine #1 before falling to the runway. The aircraft was unable to maintain controlled flight, and the captain leveled her out as multiple runway contacts occurred. Unable to be controlled, the aircraft veered left, exited the runway, crossed a taxiway, and ultimately came to rest in a saltwater marsh. Full of fuel, she caught fire destroying the cockpit and cabin roof entirely.Thankfully, all of the crew survived the incident but the aircraft was a total loss.
Here’s the probable cause report from the NTSB, which is a bit eye-opening in itself: “The failure of a midspar fitting, which was susceptible to fatigue cracking and should have been replaced with a newer, more fatigue-resistant version of the fitting as required by an airworthiness directive. Also causal was an erroneous maintenance entry made by a previous aircraft owner, which incorrectly reflected that the newer fitting had been installed.”
Overhead image of the crash scene - Photo: Wikipedia
The #2 engine sitting on the runway after separation
Photo: Wikipedia
This 707-321B had a colorful history before entering the Omega family. While operating with PanAm as flight 812 in 1969, the aircraft suffered a bird strike on engine #2 during a takeoff roll in Sydney, Australia. Shortly after calling out V1, they struck a flock of seagulls and immediately observed engine #2’s performance rapidly decline. The crew aborted the takeoff but there was not adequate distance to safely stop and the aircraft came to rest about 500 feet beyond the runway in soft ground. No injuries were reported.
Where can these Omega Air Refueling Services tankers be spotted? For myself and most anyone in Southern California, you can find them operating out of March Air Reserve Base (KRIV). They park on the southern end of the field with the other commercial aircraft and their trademark Omega symbol on the vertical stabilizer is easy to spot.
Omega’s contract is to support Navy and Marine Corps aircraft, so there must be logistical benefits to utilizing KRIV, an Air Force Reserve Base. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that KRIV was simply the closest airport with room for these wide-bodies to operate regularly. Again, OARS is a privately-owned, for-profit commercial company. Efficiency and keeping operating costs low is a high priority.
From observing Omega aircraft on ADS-B, they predominantly operate in W-291 and the SoCal Offshore Range. Less frequent, but still occurring, are flights that head east into the desert ranges. Omega is a commercial company that utilizes common flight routes, so they will always (I suspect) broadcast their location on flight tracking programs.
An ADS-B track for N974VV, operating as OMEGA10, showing routes throughout W-291, as well as in the desert over the Salton Sea
It is inspiring to me to see a company like Omega start from such an organic idea and grow to what it has become today. There’s no doubt leaning on the private sector could generate a lot of efficiencies and cost-savings that the government simply isn’t programmed to care about.
Keep your eyes out for Omega. Whether you’re looking for a possible career or internship opportunity or simply an avid plane spotter, they’re worth keeping in mind. Thank you for taking the time to read this blog post and I hope you learned some new things as I did! Keep your eyes on the skies!
Resources
Omega Air Refueling Services Website: http://www.omegaairrefueling.com/
Omega Air Refueling Services Wikipedia Page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega_Aerial_Refueling_Services
Omega Flight 70 Accident Wikipedia Page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega_Aerial_Refueling_Services_Flight_70
N624RH Info: https://flightaware.com/resources/registration/N624RH
N624RH Info: https://www.planelogger.com/Aircraft/Search?registration=N624RH
N707AR Info: https://planelogger.com/Aircraft/Registration/N707AR/492873
N707AR Sydney 1969 Accident Report: https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19691201-0
N623RH Photo: https://www.jetphotos.com/registration/N623RH
N974VV Info: https://www.planespotters.net/airframe/mcdonnell-douglas-dc-10-40-n974vv-omega-air/elw296
N264DE Info: https://www.planespotters.net/airframe/mcdonnell-douglas-dc-10-30-n264de-omega-air/e01p7m
