RC-135V/W - a      specialized aircraft for airborne electronic reconnaissance, developed in      the 1970s. The main tasks of the RC-135V and RC-135W are to identify      sources of radio signal in the area of potential      combat operations, collect information on land, sea and air targets,      intercept radio communication between command posts and combat units, and      monitor enemy air defenses. For this very specific work, the aircraft      crew consists of 12 to 16 surveillance operators and analysts for the      purpose of operational data collection. Usually the RC-135V and RC-135W      perform tasks together with other reconnaissance aircraft such as the E-3      AWACS, transmitting all the collected information to it as a mobile      command post through a special encrypted communication channel. The      RC-135V and RC-135W have been in service with the US Air Force for over      40 years and are the main type used for these operations; and since 2013,      three RC-135Ws have been adopted by the Royal Air Force of the United      Kingdom.