Landing the C-124C Globemaster on Johnston Island with no winds almost put us in the drink. The brakes didn't like that short runway. LOL
Posted on 02/06/2005 12:47:05 PM PST by shaggy eel
The make of jet plane that for years linked Christchurch to Antarctica has taken its last Ice flight.
C-141s were the first jets to land in Antarctica and have transported people and supplies to the United States' McMurdo Station in Antarctic for the past 40 years.
Although destined to become scrap metal on its return to the States, the last great old grey StarLifter to make the Ice flight was farewelled with much sentiment by Antarctic personnel yesterday in Christchurch before it flew back to the United States.
"It's like men and their cars – you get kind of attached to the old thing," strategic airlift commander Major Gevin Harrison said.
The aircraft had been an integral part of the lives of those working on the Ice for as long as most people could remember, he said.
In its almost half a century of service to the Antarctic mission, the C-141 put in more than 45,000 flight hours as part of Operation Deep Freeze, which kept McMurdo and Scott Base stocked with people and necessary supplies.
C-141s were used primarily for Antarctic missions since entering service in 1965, Harrison said.
Forty-seven United States Air Force staff flew out on a C-141 yesterday – also taking leave of Christchurch and their involvement with the Antarctic programme.
The C-141 will stop in American Samoa to refuel and then spend a night in Hawaii before heading to Tuscon, Arizona.
While the aircraft was a workhorse and an integral part of Antarctic history, it was not the most comfortable of rides, Harrison said. Seating arrangements inside the C-141 is so tight passengers sit facing each other with little room between knees.
The C-141s had been replaced by the newer, larger and more comfortable C-17 aircraft.
Despite its well-worn exterior and squashed interior, the StarLifter would be missed, Antarctic New Zealand chief executive Lou Sanson said. "The C-141s have been an integral part of the New Zealand Antarctic programme ... their arrival changed both the speed and volume of people and cargo that could be moved to between Christchurch and Antarctica.
"It's the end of an era and the passing of a significant Antarctic milestone."
That's less restrictive than I thought it might be, but it still makes me uncomfortable.
,,, I'm 46 years old and I've yet to be in my first gun fight. I feel comfortable.
Landing the C-124C Globemaster on Johnston Island with no winds almost put us in the drink. The brakes didn't like that short runway. LOL
>>Our laws are based on British laws, so no Constitutional rights like you've got.<<
You do have shovels, I'm sure.
About two years ago, shaggy eel. Someone had put a 50 foot section of a C-141's cargo box (Wing Roots and Empty Main Gear Pods Included) on E-Bay. The section was open at both ends. Just behind the Crew Door to just shy of the Troop Doors.
I believe the AF bought that section back. Though it would make a very cool bar!
Jack.
My Reserve Unit at Andrews had C-124 "Shakies" up to the mid-1960s, before they transitioned to C-130s (My favorite plane!).
The Old Timers used to tell stories about the Shakies that made my hair stand up. Big and Slow were its good virtues. With the Hydraulic System from Hell. And huge honking Recips that made flying into a headwind make you think you were sitting still.
Besides, I have no wish to change a Wheel and Tire that is taller and many, many times heavier than I am.
Jack.
You wish. Most of the stuff is just plain junk. I think that the government has a policy of once an item is declared obsolete or beyond economical repar or they just want to sell it, that it must stand out in the weather for at least 3 years bvefore it is sold.
And people who bid on it are insane! I watched people bid $175 for obsolete PDA's that were selling on ebay for $60!
That's one honking big airplane!
,,, as sure as there's tyranny of government, we do. We'll use our shovels if we have to.
,,, I think anyone wanting to buy and export anything military from the US needs State Department approval, even if it's obsolete. I could be wrong, but that's the impression I have from somewhere.
BTTT
Well, I'll miss the "old" Starlifter. I always enjoyed jumping (stepping) out of them.
I've flown on those but I can't work the front end, only the back.
Your beliefs may have credence, Blood of Tyrants:
The venerable M-113 Armored Personell Carrier was developed in the early 1950s. Put into Army Inventory in Europe in the Mid-1950s. Slated for the Scrap Heap and Obsolescence under Kennedy. Until Vietnam began to heat up. It's still alive and well in the Army's Inventory today.
Jack.
The engines were the same as a B-29's, iw: Not sure about the wings.
Jack.
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