Statistics

Where the data comes from

Flights are reconstructed from publicly broadcast ADS-B position data, retrieved as per-aircraft historical track files from ADS-B Exchange. We fetch a maintained watchlist of US military airlift/tanker ICAO hex codes and regenerate the most recent 2 days each run so transient gaps self-heal.

What counts as an “RCH mission”

A tracked aircraft/day is only counted when a callsign seen in its track begins with RCH (case-insensitive). This separates tasked Reach airlift from local training and positioning. The callsign is recorded per flight.

How origin & destination are inferred

ADS-B carries no flight plan, so we infer airfields by matching the track's departure point, arrival point, and farthest turnaround point to the nearest airfield in the OurAirports dataset (which includes military bases). Each match gets a confidence tier by distance:

• Confirmed — nearest airfield within 5 km
• Likely — nearest airfield within 12 km
• Approx. — nearest airfield within 18 km
• Signal lost — nearest airfield within 80 km
• Open ocean — no airfield within range (mid-ocean)

More significant airfields are preferred when several are nearby, since airlift uses real runways rather than private strips.

Fuel & cost model estimates

Estimated fuel = flight duration × a per-type average cruise burn rate. Estimated cost = fuel × jet-fuel (JP-8) price, currently $3.50/gallon (configurable). Per-type burn rates used:

• C130 Lockheed C-130 Hercules: ~650 gal/hr
• C17 Boeing C-17A Globemaster III: ~2,400 gal/hr
• C30J Lockheed C-130J Super Hercules: ~650 gal/hr
• C5 Lockheed C-5 Galaxy: ~3,500 gal/hr
• C5M Lockheed C-5M Super Galaxy: ~3,500 gal/hr
• K35R Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker: ~2,650 gal/hr
• K46 Boeing KC-46A Pegasus: ~2,400 gal/hr
• KC135 Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker: ~2,650 gal/hr
• KC46 Boeing KC-46A Pegasus: ~2,400 gal/hr

• Fuel burn is estimated from flight DURATION x a per-type average cruise burn rate. It does not model takeoff/climb, payload, winds, or holding.
• C-17 cruise burn is approximated at 2,400 US gallons/hour from public USAF performance figures.
• Jet fuel (JP-8) is priced at a configurable default of $3.50/US gallon.
• All fuel and cost figures are rough public ESTIMATES, not official Department of Defense accounting.

This is a documented minimum

Counts undercount real activity: they cover only aircraft on the watchlist that were broadcasting ADS-B within coverage. Military aircraft sometimes disable ADS-B or fly outside receiver range, and the watchlist is incomplete by construction. Treat every figure as a transparent lower bound, not an official total.