OUA
1964 - Page 11 |
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to the Government of the United States for maintenance of the
Sites) notified the Airlift Mission Commander to suspend further operations
until tractor operators and equipment could be in place to handle unloading
operations at the sites. These
operators had been programmed to be in place 15 April; how- ever, Federal Electric, experiencing difficulty at the last
moment, had been unable to hire the personnel required. A request was then made of the Federal Electric and USAF Liaison Representatives for permission
to continue limited POL deliveries to Dye Site #3. Pending arrival of the tractor oper- ators, it was proposed to unload manually. For reasons not divulged, this request was denied even though the airlift was falling seriously
behind on its POL movement schedule.
After exhausting the possibilities of the Danish labor market. Federal Electric employed tractor operators in the
United States and marshaled them at Stewart Air Force Base, New York,
for air transportation to Sondrestrom.
Arrangements were made for another C-130, enroute from Dyess to Sondrestrom, to pick them up at
Stewart. The fifth C-130D arrived at Sondresfcrom on 20 April with the tractor
operators and laborers for the site unloading operations. On 22 April, one load of POL and six
passengers were airlifted to Dye Site #3 and two passengers to Dye Site #2. On this date the airlift was eight days
and 29 POL loads behind schedule. The
same day, C-130D 57-494, attempting its first delivery run of the day,
experienced a drooped nose ski on take-off.
Emergency procedures for a drooped ski were performed in flight, but
only resulted in the nose ski going into a "nose-up" position and
jamming into the nose fairing. Cargo was jettisoned in the Sondrestrom fjord and the ski
leveled upon land- ing on a foamed strip, but was damaged beyond further use. This aircraft did not return to commission until 17 May leaving a fleet of
four aircraft to complete the airlift. |
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v. There was no deliberate attempt on the
part of the mission commander or his hard working air-combat crews to "set a
record." It was simply a devoted effort on the part of a professional team to take
advantage of a for- tuitous combination of circumstances to get a hard, dangerous
job done as quickly as was possible.
While a number of factors combined to produce a uniquely favorable situation for ice cap operation, the end
accomplishment of this remarkable feat rested finally on the professional
airmanship and dedication of the participating air combat crews. Many things happened dur- ing that 25 day period which highlight these sterling
traits. Right from the beginning, this whole group welded itself into a tight,
smoothly-coordinated team. Mission commander,
aircrews and maintenance personnel moved and acted with flawless precision throughout. The entire operation revolved around the mission commander who directed his resources with the skill and
precision of a veteran air tactician, long schooled in troop carrier and air
logistics doctrine. An individual
of lesser ability or sheer physical stamina could never have handled the bewildering array of forces and resources
moving simul- taneously toward a common goal.
As though this were not enough, during essen- tial periods of crew rest, the Airlift Mission Commander would
quit his control post from time to time to fly delivery sorties himself
to keep the vital flow moving at accelerated tempo. First flights of the day were sche- duled for 0700 take-offs.
This put the aircrews on the flight line between 0500 and 0600 hours and the maintenance personnel at their posts
between 0400 and 0500. As high as
five deliveries per crew per day were being made as the |
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