May 3, 2021
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) Someone in the U.S. Air Force apparently watches the cartoon “Rick and Morty.”
An Air Force KC-10 Extender that flew out of Al-Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday used the call sign “PIKLRICK” on a mission that saw it fly east over the Gulf of Oman, according to flight-tracking data. The KC-10A is an aircraft that refuels warplanes in flight.
The call sign appears to be a nod to an episode in which one of the titular characters in the Cartoon Network show turns himself into a pickle to escape a family therapy session. In it, the typically foul-mouthed, drunken scientist Rick Sanchez shouts “I’m Pickle Rick!” as his grandson Morty stares at him with a sad look.