Do E-6 Mercury Have Trust Reverser? (2025)

Hello

I was a little shock when I herd

-135R did not have trust reverser. It seen like a pain in the neck for the pilot who has to land them on short fields. The E-6 Mercury has the same CFM-56-2 that powers

-135R, but it been said that E-6 have trust reverser. So I am ask anybody who work or see this aircraft on a regular bases do they have trust reverser. Also do they come in loud like a

-135R?

: Yes

-135R can get noisy, one came into

Pensacola and it was almost as loud as 707-300. But they are quiet on take off.

The

E-

/B has thrust reversers. The reason the

-135R does not have thrust reversers is because when

first ordered it, the

maintenance folks didn't want another system to maintane. So the US

paid to have the thrust reverser system engineered out of the engines/system.

Quoting KC135TopBoom (Reply 1):
So the USAF paid to have the thrust reverser system engineered out of the engines/system.

Does that affect winter ops at all?

2H4

But the

-135E has trust reverser.

There is also the issue that the

-135R typically lands at light weights, i.e. it would have offloaded the bulk of its "cargo", i.e. fuel, to other aircraft. Therefore braking would be less of an issue than with something like the E-6, which I presume has a lot of heavy electronic and communications gear installed. The US

is not known for operating types such as the

-135 from short runways in any case.

Quoting 747400sp (Reply 5):
NAS Pensacola runways are kinda short. Or I could have I under estimated the runway size.

[QUOTE]

Pensacola contains Forrest Sherman Field which consists of two parallel runways (7/25) 8002'x 200 and a single North/South runway 7,137' x 200'. [QUOTE]

This is what I found on Pensacola Chamber of Commerce website. Don't know what

-135 requirements are for field length. Hope this helps.

Vadim

Quoting 747400sp (Reply 3):
But the KC-135E has trust reverser.

The

-135E was modified, mostly, from ANG/USAFR

-135As.

Quoting Visakow (Reply 6):
Don't know what KC-135 requirements are for field length.

When I was in

, IIRC, the minimum field lenght for the

-135A was 7,000', with a light gross weight (185,000lbs, or less). I would guess it is pretty much the same today with AMC and

-135s.

Quoting 747400sp (Thread starter):
Do E-6 Mercury Have Trust Reverser?

As has already been answered, the E-

has thrust reversers on all four engines as well as other emergency braking systems because of the heavy load.

Quoting 747400sp (Reply 5):
NAS Pensacola runways are kinda short. Or I could have I under estimated the runway size.

Again, as was already answered, the 7's and 25's are just over 8'000, so there's plenty of room for landing. It can handle the total tandem weight of Air Force one, which we took several times during my stay there, so it can handle just about anything as far as length and weight bearing goes.

Some ANG units send one of their

-135R to the Muskegon Airshow for static every year and their runway is 6500ft runway. Im sure the aircraft is pretty light though.

The US Navy has sent their

-18 and E-

/B up to Traverse City for Touch'n' Goes,

also has a 6500ft runway... But, it is the Navy, and they do have thrust reversers.

Quoting Visakow (Reply 6):
Don't know what KC-135 requirements are for field length. Hope this helps.

If you go in/out light, Its not that long. Ive seen the R's take off from

using barely 4,000ft. But this was most likely with a light load. Ive also seen them use upwards of 9,000, so its kinda a give or take.

ATCT