The tanker version of the C-97 Stratofreighter, the KC-97 aerial tanker of 1950, was the prime refueling aircraft of its day and set the stage for future development of the KC-135 jet tanker. Early jet bombers were limited in range, so the Strategic Air Command needed to give them the ability to make intercontinental missions. Equipped with the Boeing-designed “flying boom” refueling system, the double-lobed KC-97s could dispense 8,513 gallons of fuel while carrying 96 troops or heavy equipment.