Posted on 08/27/2004 3:38:50 AM PDT by Jet Jaguar
Fairbanks International Airport personnel felt a need for speed Wednesday as the U.S. Air Force diverted 31 F-16 fighter jets to the civilian tarmac.
Airport personnel scrambled to direct the traffic, and also hustled up some pizzas and a portable toilet for the pilots, as well as fuel for their jets.
The event was the largest military diversion Fairbanks International Airport has seen, according to airport operations manager Ric Barnett. The Air Force and the airport have an agreement to help each other in emergencies.
"It was all due to smoke," said Capt. Brad Jessmer, spokesman for Eielson Air Force Base. "The smoke got pretty thick here. When the smoke gets really bad, we don't want to take chances with our aircraft."
Smoke from area wildfires reduced visibility at Eielson to about half a mile, according to Barnett. A minimum weather requirement for F-16s to land is one-mile visibility, the former Air Force pilot said.
Most of the aircraft were part of the Air Force's annual Cope Thunder training exercise.
The first jet landed at Fairbanks International Airport at about 11 a.m., and local air traffic controllers spent the next two hours overseeing the rest of the landings.
"The traffic that flies in and out of Fairbanks is a little bit slower than fighter jets," said tower chief Kevin Haines. "It definitely was exciting ... The adrenaline was running and pumping."
Once on the ground, the jets were shepherded to an area on the tarmac just south of the airport's main terminal where they were double-parked, Barnett said.
"I went to Pizza Hut and bought pizza and Coke for them," the operations manager said. "We try to treat people nice when they come in here. (Also,) freedom isn't free. I appreciate what these guys do."
Eielson sent a team of maintenance people and some security personnel to meet the pilots, according to Jessmer.
The pilots were required to remain near their aircraft for security reasons. None of the jets were carrying live ordnance, according to Barnett.
The diversion did not disrupt regular business at the airport, Barnett said. By 4:30 p.m., the Fighting Falcons had begun heading back to Eielson.
Wednesday's diversion was the first for the Cope Thunder training exercise since 2002, Jessmer said.
Reporter Amanda Bohman can be reached at abohman@newsminer.com or 459-7544.
RETURN TO TOP
ping!
Wow...That must be quite something to see!..Thank God all landed safely...
Good morning, JJ. Lots of fires still burning in the interior. I can just imagine the excitement of seeing all those F-16 landing at the regular airport. What an air show!
What a great sight that would have been...
Military jets landing/taking off is quite a bit different from commercial airliners.
They operate much closer together and are much louder. For those who have never seen military jets operate as a group, the standard practice is to fly once down the runway and a bit beyond, and then peal off one at a time to do a 180 turn into the landing pattern. Don't know if they did this at Fairbanks, though.
I presume that F-16s use afterburner to take off, just like larger military jets.
What a nice wake up call.
jet noise...The sound of freedom!
Although my Father worked there for 35 years, I still enjoy seeing the rows of F-15's as you land or take off.
Methinks 31 F-16 fighter jets is alot in the air at one time for a training exercise. Wonder what they are training for?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.