Patriot Taxiway Industries today announced winning a contract from the Air Force to provide 16 KC-135 Portable LED Cargo Lighting System kits to the Air Mobility Command at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, in support of the Aeromedical Evacuation (AE) mission.

Patriot’s lighting system produces more than 30 times the illumination that the original lighting system generated. Such an innovation will improve the capabilities of aero medical crews to perform critical inflight patient care to wounded military personnel.

The KC-135 Cargo lighting System was deployed this summer for flight testing from Afghanistan to a medical treatment faculty in Germany by the Kansas Air National Guard. The system supported several AE missions; the lighting system received high remarks from the aero medical staff.

Patriot worked closely with Kansas ANG aero medical staff to develop a 12 light bar system. “This particular contract hit closer to home,” explained Steven Smits, President of Patriot Taxiway Industries “Being a KC-135 maintainer and knowing the mission personally, I challenged our team to deliver on this project”. Due to the close connection to KC-135 command Patriot even used its own capital funds and resources to ensure a quality product that best fit the situation.

“The AE mission and the ability to support wounded warriors were improved by the leadership of General Bunting and his Kansas Coyote Air Guardsman. Hearing from doctors that the Patriot lighting improved their ability to care for our country’s critically wounded as we bring them home was humbling,” stated Kevin McDermott, Vice President of Patriot Taxiway Industries. “We are actively looking for C-5 or C-130 operators to demonstrate our system on their platforms” stated McDermott.

For more information about the KC-135 Portable LED Cargo Lighting System including a video demonstration, visit Patriot’s micro site at https://www.patriottaxiway.com/KC135/. Patriot Taxiway Industries will be exhibiting the system at the Airlift/Tanker show in Orlando on the 28-31st of October.