Military Airlift and Air-to-Air Refuelling 2026
Military Airlift and Air-to-Air Refuelling 2026 will bring together national and multinational perspectives on air mobility, military airlift, and air-to-air refueling. The 27th annual conference will examine developments across heavy and tactical airlift, rotary wing, and AAR.
Image credit: SAE Media Group
The program includes perspectives from national air forces, multinational organizations, and industry, with discussions covering air mobility programs and strategies, operational requirements, modernization, interoperability, logistics, training, and national and multinational procurement efforts.
The conference will also examine how military airlift and air-to-air refueling support global defense operations, including strategic reach, tactical airlift, humanitarian support, and NATO, coalition, and multinational operations.
When is Military Airlift and Air-to-Air Refuelling 2026?
Military Airlift and Air-to-Air Refuelling 2026 will take place on December 2–3, 2026, in Florence, Italy.
The annual site visit will take place on December 4, 2026.
Themes
The 2026 conference will examine operational, technical, and capability developments in military air mobility.
Key areas include strategic and tactical airlift, air-to-air refueling, fleet modernization, interoperability, contested logistics, command and control, Arctic operations, training, infrastructure, and sustainment.
The program will also cover developments involving aircraft including the C-130J, C-27J Spartan, KC-390/C-390 Millennium, KC-46, A400M, and C-17, alongside multinational tanker and strategic airlift capabilities.
What’s On?
The two-day conference program will feature keynote presentations, operational briefings, panel discussions, joint Q&A sessions, networking periods, and presentations from military and multinational air mobility organizations.
Day One
Day One will open with remarks from Major General (ret.) Andreas Schick, former Commander of European Air Transport Command, and Brigadier General (Res.) Luca Tonello, former Air Mobility Command Ops Officer with the Italian Air Force.
The opening keynote from Major General Alessandro De Lorenzo, Commander, Mobility and Support Forces, Italian Air Force, will examine Italian airlift and air-to-air refueling capabilities, operational experience, modernization, interoperability, and Italy’s role in multinational airlift and refueling operations.
Further sessions will cover the Italian Air Force’s global air mobility activities, Slovak air mobility modernization, Lithuania’s C-27J Spartan modernization program, the Portuguese Air Force’s KC-390 operations, Sweden’s transition to the C-390 Millennium, and the German-French Binational Air Transport Squadron.
The afternoon program will address French strategic and tactical air mobility, the Multinational Multi-Role Tanker Transport Unit, Royal Australian Air Force refueling operations in the Indo-Pacific, and integration of the KC-46 with European receiver aircraft.
Day One will include a panel discussion on air-to-air refueling cooperation and interoperability, before closing remarks and a drinks reception hosted by Leonardo.
Day Two
Following the opening remarks, Day Two’s main conference sessions will begin with a presentation from General Randall Reed, Commander of US Transportation Command, addressing global mobility, power projection, contested logistics, and the role of airlift and air refueling in supporting military operations.
Brigadier General Michele A. Lo Bianco, Commander of the 618th Air Operations Center Tanker Airlift Control Center, will discuss global air mobility command and control, digital mission planning, coordination with international partners, and resilience against cyber and electronic threats.
Other sessions will cover weapons integration, deployable logistics, Canadian and Norwegian air mobility, Arctic and High North operations, UK A400M operations, multinational strategic lift, and European and NATO airlift coordination.
The final sessions will focus on advanced airlift tactics and multinational training, including presentations from the Advanced Airlift Tactics Training Center and European Tactical Airlift Centre. The conference will close with a panel discussion on building skills, readiness, and interoperability for future airlift operations, followed by closing remarks.
Site Visit
The annual site visit is scheduled for December 4, 2026, following the two-day conference.
Speakers
Military Airlift and Air-to-Air Refuelling 2026 will feature speakers including:
- General Randall Reed, Commander, US Transportation Command
- Major General Alessandro De Lorenzo, Commander, Mobility and Support Forces, Italian Air Force
- Brigadier General Michele A. Lo Bianco, Commander, 618th Air Operations Center Tanker Airlift Control Center, Air Mobility Command, US Air Force
- Colonel Danilo Lewtschenko, Deputy Commander, Multinational Multi-Role Tanker Transport Unit (MMU)
- Colonel Paulo Martins, Chief of Operations Division, Portuguese Air Force
- Group Captain Sarah Stalker, Defence Attaché to Northern Europe, Australian Government Defence
- Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Bowers, Chief, Air Refueling Branch, Air Mobility Division, 603rd Air Operations Center, US Air Forces Europe and Air Forces Africa
- Lieutenant Colonel Olin Johnson, Chief, Airlift Coordination Centre ALCC, NATO Allied Air Command
- Lieutenant Colonel Per Carlemalm, C-390 Transition Team Lead, 7th Wing Såtenäs, Swedish Air Force
- Wing Commander James Lainchbury, A400M Head of Engineering Authority, RAF
Registration and Early Bird Offer
An early bird offer is available for registrations completed by August 21, 2026, with a stated saving of £400.
Where is Military Airlift and Air-to-Air Refuelling 2026?
Grand Hotel Mediterraneo
Lungarno del Tempio, 44
Florence, Italy
To learn more about Military Airlift and Air-to-Air Refuelling 2026, to register to attend or exhibit, please click below .
