According to Newton′s second law which statement best explains why the pilot of the receiver aircraft must increase the throttle to keep up with the tanker aircraft? What will happen to the acceration?

According to Newton's second law, which states that \( F = ma \) (force equals mass times acceleration), the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass. In the context of an aircraft receiving fuel from a tanker, the pilot must increase the throttle to provide more thrust in order to match the speed of the tanker. If the tanker is moving at a higher velocity, the receiver aircraft must increase its thrust to overcome the aerodynamic drag and any additional forces acting on it, such as the wake turbulence created by the tanker. When the pilot increases the throttle, they are increasing the thrust (the force) acting on the receiver aircraft. Assuming the mass of the aircraft remains constant, an increase in thrust will result in a greater net force, which in turn will lead to an increase in acceleration. If the throttle is not increased, the receiver aircraft may slow down relative to the tanker, resulting in a decrease in acceleration as it struggles to keep up with the higher-speed tanker. Thus, to maintain speed and stay in formation with the tanker, the pilot must actively increase the throttle, thereby ensuring that the aircraft's acceleration is sufficient to match that of the tanker.