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fltsload

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  1. From Air Force News, http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/1104487/afs-1st-hc-130-takes-its-final-flight-to-retirement.aspx PATRICK AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. (AFNS) -- After more than 50 years of faithful service and rescue missions spanning the globe, King 52, the first HC-130P/N configured for Air Force rescue in 1964, retired March 6, 2017. Accompanied by its 920th Rescue Wing dedicated crew chiefs and a nostalgic aircrew, the aircraft, tail number 4852, heads to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, from Patrick AFB, Florida, where it has been stationed since mid-2015. “It was about to retire when we acquired it from Moody Air Force Base,(Georgia),” said Tech. Sgt. Norberto Nieves, a 720th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron expeditor and former crew chief to King 52. “It was a work horse; that’s for sure.” “It’s sad to see it go,” the San Juan, Puerto Rico, native continued. “As crew chiefs, we dedicate a lot of time, sweat, and sometimes blood to these aircraft. They become a part of us.” Tech. Sgt. Matthew White, a 720th AMXS King 52’s dedicated crew chief, said while the aircraft was out of commission with a major maintenance issue for a good portion of the time he had it, he’s still upset to see it retire. “Like Nieves said, these aircraft become a part of you and it’s tough to see something you’ve worked so hard on go into retirement,” said White, a Spokane, Washington, native. “The most rewarding part of being a dedicated crew chief is seeing the aircraft you spent so many hours on takeoff and come back home safe and sound.” During its time at Patrick AFB, King 52 flew local training missions as well as missions to Key West, Florida, and across the country to Davis-Monthan AFB. Maj. Nick Philpitt, the 920th Rescue Wing Inspector General Inspections chief and an HC-130 navigator, said he flew King 52 a handful of times and is honored to be part of the aircraft’s final flight. “I haven't flown a lot of missions with #52; however, it is somewhat sentimental to be flying her to retirement denoting it's the end of an era,” said Philpitt, an Orlando, Florida, native. “Like a classic car that you've owned and driven, an airplane become(s) an extension of you. Putting it to bed for the last time is moving." King 52's career ends with the Air Force Materiel Command’s 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, where it will be stored in the “boneyard” with other retired military and government aircraft. As for the 920th RQW’s HC-130P/N maintenance crews, they continue to work hard at home and abroad ensuring the fleet is rescue-ready. The HC-130P/N is the only dedicated fixed-wing combat search and rescue platform in the Air Force inventory. The mission of the HC-130P/N "King" is to rapidly deploy to austere airfields and denied territory in order to execute, all weather personnel recovery operations anytime, anywhere. King crews routinely perform high and low altitude personnel and equipment airdrops, infiltration/exfiltration of personnel, helicopter air-to-air refueling, and forward area refueling point missions. When tasked, the aircraft also conducts humanitarian assistance operations, disaster response, security cooperation/aviation advisory, emergency aeromedical evacuation, casualty evacuation, and noncombatant evacuation operations.
  2. If I remember correctly, it's 5,000 lbs..
  3. The last 440th Airlift Wing C-130H will leave Fort Bragg on Wednesday morning, officials said Monday. The scheduled 9 a.m. flight, from Pope Field to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, will mark the end of an era for aviation on the nation's largest military installation. The 440th Airlift Wing, part of the Air Force Reserve, had flown the last planes permanently based on Fort Bragg. But an Air Force decision to shutter that unit grounded the planes earlier this year, leaving Fort Bragg paratrooper units to depend on outside air crews for airborne training. The final flight also will mark the end of efforts to ready the 440th's planes to be shipped to other installations. Those efforts began in May, days after the Air Force notified Congress that it would move forward on its two-year-old plans to shutter the unit. The 440th's last plane is destined for the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, officials said. That unit's facilities near Tucson, are often called "The Boneyard," as it is where the Air Force stores its unused aircraft. Other 440th planes have been taken to Little Rock, Arkansas, where they were reassigned to the 189th Airlift Wing, an Air National Guard unit based there. For the last several weeks, crews had prepared the planes for their final flights with the unit. That process included an inventory of the planes and their equipment, inspections and maintenance. Last month, crews involved in that work said it was an emotional effort. The unit, which has been based at Fort Bragg or the former Pope Air Force Base since 2007, was originally slated for inactivation in 2014. But the loss of the only conventional airlift assets permanently based at the home of the bulk of the Army's airborne and quick reaction forces led to a political fight that ended earlier this year. Today, only a few hundred of the 440th's airmen and civilians - who once numbered upwards of 1,200 - remain with the unit. An official inactivation will take place in late September, officials said. Source: http://www.fayobserver.com/military/last-th-plane-set-to-depart-fort-bragg-this-week/article_0fb05a60-dd20-557f-982b-b7f8675b5711.html View full article
  4. Or try this one. http://www.armytimes.com/story/military/2016/04/21/army-launches-investigation-into-airborne-humvee-mishap-video/83333714/
  5. The rain had been pouring and there was a big rain puddle in front of the pub just outside the Air Force Base. A very old and long retired Aviator was standing near the edge with a fishing rod, his line in the puddle. A curious young Air Force pilot came over to him and asked what he was doing. 'Fishing,' the old man simply said. 'Poor old fool,' the young officer thought. He then invited the old timer into the pub for a drink. As he felt he should start some conversation while they were sipping their whiskey, the Air Force pilot asked, "And how many have you caught?' 'You're the eighth,' the old guy answered.
  6. The Fulton system was never used to recover satillites.
  7. Bob, 65-0979 is at Wallops. http://code830.wff.nasa.gov/Index.cfm?PageID=67
  8. Found this for you: Crew: Five Engines: Four Allison T56-A-7 turboprops; 4,050 hp each Wingspan: 132 ft 7 in Length: 97 ft 9 in Height: 38 ft 3 in Weight: empty: 72,892 lbs; gross: 135,000 lbs; max: 175,000 lbs Speed: cruise: 328 mph; max: 384 mph Range: 2,090 miles Service Ceiling: 41,300 ft Armament: None Cost: $22,900,000 (approximate)
  9. When closing the ramp and door from the back, the door must close first, then the ramp. If you don't do it that way, the air stream will cause the door to float that last 4 inches and the door will not close. Watch the ramp and door when closing, using the ADS switch, you'll notice that the door always closes first.
  10. After landing my new job as the greeter of a department store, a good find for many retirees, I lasted less than a day. Here’s what happened... About two hours into my first day on the job a very loud, decidedly unattractive, woman walked into the store along with her two kids, yelling obscenities at them all the way through the entrance. As I had been instructed, I said, pleasantly, "Good morning and welcome to Walmart." I then said, "Nice children you have there. Are they twins?" The ugly woman stopped yelling long enough to say, "Don't be a damn idiot. Of course they aren't twins. The oldest one's 9, and the other one' s 7. Why the hell would you think they're twins? Are you blind, or just stupid?" I replied, "I'm neither blind nor stupid, Madam. I just couldn't believe someone had sex with you twice. Have a good day and thank you for shopping at Walmart." My Supervisor said I probably wasn't cut out for this line of work.
  11. If I remember correctly, the outer hard point was rated for 5,000 lbs.
  12. A C-141-A Starlifter had been delayed for take-off for over an hour at Thule Air Force Base, Greenland, because a sewage repository had not been pumped out. Finally a young airman wanders up to the aircraft with the appropriate equipment. The airman fiddles around for a while, does his thing, and then gets ready to leave. The aircraft commander, a young captain, confronts the airman. "You've caused me to be two hours late for my take-off. I'll see that you are not only reprimanded, but punished as well! " At that the young airman, smiles. "Sir, with all due respect, I have no stripes, I'm stationed at Thule, Greenland, it's 20 degrees below zero, and I'm pumping s#!+ from your aircraft. Just what kind of punishment did you have in mind?"
  13. Rolls-Royce modifications to legacy C-130H T56 turboprop engines yielded even better fuel economy and reliability than predicted in recent trials at Edwards AFB, Calif., announced the company on Dec. 10. "The Air Force flight test team "confirmed that by inserting new technology, we can bring dramatic improvements in fuel consumption and engine reliability to C-130 operators," said Tom Hartmann, Rolls-Royce's senior vice president, in the company's release. Flying a C-130H fitted with both standard and modified T56 engines, testers at Edwards found that Roll-Royce's Series 3.5 upgrades reduced fuel burn by nearly 10 percent and increased reliability by 22 percent, according to the release. The Series 3.5 modifications include fitting new turbine blades and compressor vanes, which the company says maintainers could perform during regular depot maintenance. These modifications could save the Air Force as much as $2 billion across the legacy C-130 fleet out to 2040, asserts Rolls-Royce.
  14. From the AF Assoc. daily report:The first MC-130J special-mission aircraft slated for conversion to the Air Force's new AC-130J gunship configuration made its maiden flight this week from Lockheed Martin's production facility in Marietta, Ga., announced the company. This airframe will feature the modular Precision Strike Package, a scalable weapons and sensor suite already carried on Air Force Special Operations Command's MC-130Ws. It is scheduled to fly as a gunship in early 2014, according to the company's Dec. 4 release. Lockheed Martin announced in July that it had begun assembling this airframe in Marietta. The Air Force intends to acquire 16 new-build AC-130Js under a $1.6 billion recapitalization project meant to replace its legacy AC-130Hs and provide additional gunship capacity. The AC-130J fleet is slated to commence operations in 2015. Lockheed Martin noted that the Air Force has a requirement for 37 AC-130Js.
  15. The 317th Airlift Group at Dyess AFB, Tex., took delivery of its 23rd factory-fresh C-130J transport, leaving the unit only five airframes shy of its planned full complement of Super Hercules airplanes. The new aircraft arrived at the Texas base on Sept. 13, piloted by Brig. Gen. Lee Levy, Air Mobility Command's director of logistics. Dyess is expected to receive it remaining five C-130Js by 2013, according to base officials. The new airlift force will replace the group's legacy fleet of C-130Hs. Once the final Super Hercules is in place, Dyess will be home to the largest C-130J force in the world, said the officials. The group received its 22nd C-130J on Aug. 29.
  16. Goodbye, Old Friend: Members of the 79th Rescue Squadron at Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., executed the unit's final mission in the HC-130P personnel recovery airplane. The squadron is transitioning to the new, more capable HC-130J model and expects to commence operations with it in October, according to a base release. The final HC-130P sortie came on Sept. 12 as a crew took the aircraft out for roughly seven hours, states the release. Upon landing, squadron colleagues and family members greeted the crew on the flightline to mark the occasion. Lt. Col. Christopher McCarthy, a 563rd Rescue Group instructor pilot, who was the aircraft commander on the sortie, said he thinks the C-130J will be "an amazing technological advancement" over the nearly 50-year-old HC-130P. He noted, "It will make our job easier and make us much more efficient as rescue pilots."
  17. [ATTACH=CONFIG]2949[/ATTACH] The 418th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards AFB, Calif., is putting the new High Speed Container Delivery System through the wringers. HSCDS, an evolution of the proven Container Delivery System airdrop method, would allow for the aerial delivery of supplies from C-130Js at lower altitudes and higher airspeeds, said Edwards officials in an Aug. 1 release. Initial developmental testing began in June and is expected to wrap up in late August. The testing includes increasing airdrop airspeed from 140 knots to 245 knots, reducing drop altitude to 250 feet above the ground, and using a parachute to extract up to eight 2,000-pound supply containers that have traditionally been gravity-dropped with the CDS, said Chris Webber, 418th FLTS airdrop testing lead engineer. HSCDS has the promise of being a more accurate delivery method and will also be safer for aircrews since they won't have to fly slower during the airdrop, which makes them more vulnerable to anti-aircraft threats, states the release. Read Related Story at Edwards.AF.Mil
  18. When hauling Marines, we would put up a sign saying "Officers only" on the urinals at FS. 245, even if they were wired or screwed shut . The Gunny's would die laughing cause the young 2nd and 1st Lieutenants wouldn't go to the back to use the ones at 737.
  19. 65-0979 was at Hill AFB, with the 514th Flts. Transferred to 418th Flts, Edwards AFB in 1995. Than it went to Eglin AFB. Now in the Bone yard.
  20. From the Air Force Association: Down the Line, One Last Time: The last MC-130E Combat Talon I to enter programmed depot maintenance before the MC-130 fleet is retired has nearly finished its final refit, according to officials at Robins AFB, Ga., home of the depot. Tail No. 62-1843—the oldest Combat Talon I still in service—was in "pretty bad shape upon arrival," noted Kevin Johnson, 560th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron MC-130 line supervisor. "There is generally a good bit of work for everyone involved—structural and avionics-wise," added George Hoffman, 560th AMXS PDM flight chief. Consistently deployed, often supporting clandestine operations in austere conditions, the Combat Talons "have a lot of cracks and corrosion," said Hoffman. Robins took PDM responsibility for Air Force Special Operations Command's fleet of 14 MC-130Es from the Big Safari program office in the 1990s. The first MC-130E arrived at Robins for PDM in 1998, according to base officials. Aircraft 1843 is expected to leave the depot in early April, they said. New MC-130Js are replacing the MC-130Es.
  21. Out of the Shadow Emerges the Commando II: Air Force Special Operations Command has changed the name of its new MC-130J aircraft. Gone is Combat Shadow II. In its place is Commando II, announced command officials Thursday. "This name best reflects the multi-mission role of the aircraft and the units that will fly them," said Lt. Gen. Eric Fiel, AFSOC commander. It also "embodies the broader linage of special operations force aircraft," he said. The Air Force's original Commando was the C-46 transport that served from World War II until the late 1960s. Before settling on Commando II, AFSOC officials said they also considered Combat Arrow and Combat Knife. The MC-130J is designed to fly low-visibility, low-level air refueling missions for special operations helicopters and tiltrotor aircraft. It's also configured to infiltrate and exfiltrate politically sensitive or hostile territories in order to support special operations ground forces. Commando IIs are replacing AFSOC's aging fleet of previous-model MC-130s.
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