Gridlock stalls replacement of aging air tankers

After more than 50 years as the military's gas station in the sky — and a decade of attempts to replace it — the KC-135 is showing its age.

At a base outside the nation's capital, the cockpit of a 1957 aerial refueling plane still has a quarter-sized hole in the ceiling which crews once used to navigate by the stars.

Pilot hands have worn away much of the black paint from the yokes used to guide the jet. Large patches of silver tape hold up tubing in the cabin. And the oldest member of the crew on a recent training mission was still seven years younger than the plane.

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