Married pilots hook up on military refueling mission

Scotth

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As reunions go, it only lasted a few minutes.

But Jeff and Christine McLean were thrilled nonetheless to see each other, even though they couldn't hug, let alone kiss.

Married in May 2009 in Fox Point, the couple has spent most of their first year of marriage apart.
Really far apart. As in different cockpits in different airspaces.

Air Force Capt. Christine McLean pilots a refueling plane and Navy Lt. Jeff McLean flies an F/A-18 Super Hornet.

After Christine McLean was deployed from England to southwest Asia in May for refueling missions in the skies over Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries, she hoped she might hook up - literally - with her husband, who has been flying combat and support missions from the USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier since January.

But it wasn't until last week, on Jeff McLean's final and 40th flight on this deployment that he rendezvoused with the air refuelers over Pakistan and was happy to see it was his wife's plane.

As commander of her KC-135 Stratotanker, Christine McLean speaks to pilots of planes maneuvering behind the refueler to top off their fuel tanks. So the couple spoke for a short time. It was dark, which meant only a brief glimpse for the husband and wife.

Remainder of story: http://www.jsonline.com/news/97641399.html

mjs-refuel.jpg
 
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