"Two aircraft were involved in the incident. One of the aircraft went down in western Iraq, and the second landed safely. This was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire."
It is unclear if there are fatalities. U.S. officials told Air & Space Forces Magazine that rescue efforts were ongoing and the situation was still unclear.
The second aircraft that landed safely is also a KC-135, U.S. officials told Air & Space Forces Magazine. A KC-135 operating from Israel declared an in-flight emergency March 12, flight tracking data shows. The U.S. military has yet to say whether that aircraft was involved in the same incident. Details of the second aircraft were first reported by
CNN.
The unofficial Facebook site Air Force amn/nco/snco posted a photograph, purportedly of the second Stratotanker, after it landed. The photograph shows that a significant portion of that aircraft's tail had been lost. Air & Space Forces Magazine has not independently confirmed the authenticity of the photograph."
If this is accurate, it sounds like a refueling accident.
But if picture mentioned at the end with the aircraft that landed safely missing a chunk of its tail is authentic, it doesn't sound good for the one that went down and those aboard it.