Flying off Miami South Beach at the Hyundai Air & Sea Show 2024. The Stratotanker is flown by 54th ARS based at Altus AFB. Operating under Air Education and Training Command (AETC), the squadron provides initial and advanced training for KC-135R pilots and boom operators as the tanker Formal Training Unit. It traces its lineage to 54th Troop Carrier Squadron that was activated on the C-47 Skytrain on 30 May 1942. The 54th TCS took part in the Aleutian Islands campaign. The 'R' designation started in the 1980s as KC-135A and KC-135E engines were replaced with 98 kN CFM-56-2B1 turbofans.