Air Force Tests Hot Refuel and Rearm for F-35As

The 388th Fighter Wing at Hill Air Force Base is training crews to service F-35A fighters with engines running.

Updated on Nov. 9, 2026 in Military

Wide view of a single F-35A fighter jet on a desert airfield apron, exhaust shimmering behind it, with a fuel hose and truck in the distance under a clear sky and mountain ridge. — The U.S. Air Force's 388th Fighter Wing is training crews at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to refuel and rearm F-35A fighters while their engines keep running. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

The U.S. Air Force's 388th Fighter Wing is expanding training to refuel and rearm F-35A fighters at the same time while their engines remain running and pilots stay in the cockpit. The procedure, called a hot Integrated Combat Turn, is being practiced at Hill Air Force Base, Utah.

Why it matters

The procedure is intended to shorten the interval between missions and reduce how long aircraft sit exposed on the ground. The training supports the Agile Combat Employment approach of operating from dispersed locations.

The 388th Fighter Wing disclosed the training on November 6, 2026, following an October 23 certification event at Hill Air Force Base. The Air Force has not released a measured time-savings figure for the procedure, which remains under expansion.

The players

388th Fighter Wing

The U.S. Air Force unit based at Hill Air Force Base in Utah that flies F-35A fighters and is conducting the hot refuel and rearm training.

75th Air Base Wing

The Air Force wing whose personnel position and ground the fuel truck during the hot Integrated Combat Turn procedure at Hill Air Force Base.

Air Combat Command

The Air Force major command that reported the 325th Fighter Wing's hot Integrated Combat Turn milestone in June 2025.

The details

Refueling and weapons loading happen concurrently while the engine runs, requiring coordination among pilots, crew chiefs, weapons personnel and fuel specialists. Personnel from the 75th Air Base Wing position and ground the fuel truck, and rehearsals are conducted with the engine shut down before work proceeds around a running aircraft.

June 2025: The 325th Fighter Wing reported a hot Integrated Combat Turn milestone.
October 23, 2026: A certification event was held at Hill Air Force Base.
November 6, 2026: The 388th Fighter Wing disclosed the expanded training.
Coming months: Additional weapons load crews and crew chiefs are to be trained.

Roadmap

The hot Integrated Combat Turn is a practical extension of Agile Combat Employment, the doctrine of spreading fighter operations across many smaller airfields rather than concentrating them at large hubs. Shortening each servicing cycle addresses a core vulnerability of dispersed operations: the time aircraft spend exposed on the ground between sorties.

The procedure could shorten the servicing window between sorties, which affects how quickly squadrons based at Hill Air Force Base can return fighters to the air. The wing's plan to train more weapons load crews and crew chiefs in the coming months indicates the procedure is moving from certification toward wider use.

The takeaway

Shorter servicing cycles are a practical measure of how quickly dispersed fighter forces can recover between missions. Watch for the number of trained crews the 388th reports in the coming months as an indicator of how widely the procedure will be adopted.