Pease performs boss lift

U.S. Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Shenna Londoff, a KC-46A boom operator with the 157th Air Refueling Wing, New Hampshire Air National Guard, performs an aerial refueling while her civilian employer looks on, May 24, 2023. The refueling mission was part of an Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve boss lift incentive flight, which recognized 25 local employers for the support they provide to their NH Air National Guard employees. (U.S. Air National Guard Photo by Senior Master Sgt. Timm Huffman)

Pease performs boss lift

Ken Deem, an employer from the New Hampshire area, and U.S. Air National Guard Airman 1st Class Jeremias Cruz Fuentes, an Air Traffic Controller with the 157th Air Refueling Wing who works for Deem as a civilian, learn about KC-46A fuel capacity during an Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve boss lift aboard the jet, May 24, 2023. The ESGR incentive flight recognized 25 local employers for the support they provide to their NH Air National Guard employees. (U.S. Air National Guard Photo by Senior Master Sgt. Timm Huffman)

Pease performs boss lift

Ashley Boucher, an employer from the New Hampshire area, records video from inside the cockpit of a KC-46A assigned to the 157th Air Refueling Wing, Pease Air National Guard Base, N.H., as it receives fuel from a second Pease KC-46A, May 24, 2023. Boucher was aboard the jet as part of an Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve incentive flight that recognized local employers who were nominated for their outstanding support of their Air National Guard employees. (U.S. Air National Guard Photo by Senior Master Sgt. Timm Huffman)

Pease performs boss lift

Ashley Boucher, a civilian employer from the New Hampshire area, watches Maj. Christian Lapp and Lt. Cole Rossiter, KC-46A pilots with the 157th Air Refueling Wing, Pease Air National Guard Base, New Hampshire, as they position their aircraft to receive fuel from another KC-46A from the unit. Boucher was aboard as part of an ESGR incentive flight in recognition of 25 local employers who were nominated for their outstanding support of their New Hampshire Air National Guard employees. (U.S. Air National Guard Photo by Senior Master Sgt. Timm Huffman)

Pease performs boss lift

A group of civilian employers and the New Hampshire Air National Guard Airmen they employee stand in front of a KC-46A assigned to the 157th Air Refueling Wing at Pease Air National Guard Base, N.H., May 24, 2023. The employers were at the base to be recognized by the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve for their outstanding support of the Air National Guard employees. The visit included an incentive flight, during which they had front-row seats to aerial refueling operations. (U.S. Air National Guard Photo by Senior Master Sgt. Timm Huffman)

Local employers get up close with Pease air refueling mission

Published June 2, 2023
By Senior Master Sgt. Timothy Huffman,
157th Air Refueling Wing

PEASE AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, NH -- Representatives from local employers had the opportunity to fly aboard 157th Air Refueling Wing KC-46A aircraft during an air refueling mission, May 24.

Approximately 25 civilian employers participated in the incentive flight, commonly called a boss lift, alongside the New Hampshire Air National Guardsmen they employ as civilians.

The boss lift, the first the unit conducted aboard one of its KC-46 aircraft, was arranged through the NH Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, an agency within the Department of Defense with the mission of strengthening relationships between civilian employers and the reserve and guard members they employ.

Following a welcoming remarks from 157th Air Refueling Wing leadership, the group was split in half and then boarded two KC-46s. The jets took off from the Pease runway, one after the other, and crews spent the duration of the flight practicing air refueling operations; a KC-135 assigned to the 914th Air Refueling Wing, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, New York, also participated in the mission.

The employers took turns cycling through the cockpit and the refueling pod throughout the aerial refueling portion of the flight, observing as the pilots and boom operators received and offloaded fuel.

Lynda Miller, who represented her local company on the flight, said the whole day was excellent and gave her a better appreciation for the work her employees do when they are on duty with the National Guard.

“I’m proud that my company is a good supporter of the National Guard,” said Miller. “Our employees who serve are really disciplined, hard workers, who are really good at what they do. They are smart, smart folks.”

According to James Moody, the NH ESGR vice chair, the flight was an opportunity to reward employers who are already supporting their members’ service in the Guard but also give them a better appreciation of what their employees do when their military job pulls them away from civilian life.

“Without employers, the reserve components would be much smaller,” said Moody, who likened service in the Guard to a three-legged stool made up of family, military service, and civilian employment. “If one isn’t there, it falls over.”