92nd Air Refueling Wing Launches Iron Ascent Tactical Training at Fairchild

FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash., May 8, 2026 — The 92nd Air Refueling Wing executed Iron Ascent, a three-day tactical training course that prepared airmen from various career fields to operate as expeditionary warfighters.

The course drew participants from across the wing and supporting units at Fairchild Air Force Base. It focused on building capabilities for austere and contested environments, per the U.S. Department of Defense release dated May 8, 2026. The 92nd Air Refueling Wing operates KC-135 Stratotankers, which provide aerial refueling for combat and transport aircraft worldwide; the wing typically supports operations for hundreds of aircraft sorties annually as part of U.S. Strategic Command and U.S. Transportation Command missions.

Iron Ascent shifts training from siloed career-field instruction to integrated expeditionary operations. Prior to the course, many support airmen received limited hands-on tactical training outside their primary specialties. The new three-day format, completed by May 8, 2026, now certifies participants in cross-functional skills for rapid deployment.

The change triggers immediate follow-on requirements for unit commanders to incorporate Iron Ascent graduates into exercise schedules and deployment rosters. It also sets a benchmark for similar courses at other Air Mobility Command wings, requiring those units to align readiness metrics by the end of fiscal 2026.

Air Force headquarters must now track certification rates from the program to report upward to the Pentagon on expeditionary force generation.

This marks the latest iteration of Air Mobility Command investments in multi-capable airman training. The Defense Department has expanded such programs since 2022 to address demands for agile combat employment concepts across geographic combatant commands.