Truckin on

Dedicated to the Men and Women

of
AF Vehicle Operations & Maintenance Past, Present, and Future

1 Sep 2015

Special Points of Interest:

VM Innovation Saves Air Force

Thousands: PG 1 - 2

VOps Wins Team Spirit Trophy:

PG 3

Vehicle management innovation saves Air Force

thousands
by Senior Airman Victor J. Caputo
22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
Contributor: Carl Hunsinger, CMSgt (Ret/2T1)

Inside this issue:

Driving in the Networked Age

PG 2

WIT: How you can find success

PG 4
before breakfast!
Trucking News

PG 5

Fleet Management - Lakeland

Style

PG 6

Airport Wiki-Wiki shuttles to be

PG 7
replaced with green vehicles
Swincar

PG 8

Requiem for the Humvee.

PG 8

End of an Era

PG 9

The Survey Says.

PG 10 - 16

We Are The Mighty

PG 16

More SAC Remembrances

PG 17

C.J. Slifko, 22nd Logistics Readiness Squadron vehicle management flight allied trades
mechanic, shows Col. Albert Miller, 22nd Air Refueling Wing commander, a street-sweeper truck
that was recently refurbished through in-house metal fabrication, July 15, 2015, at McConnell Air
Force Base, Kan. Slifko identified the ability to replace the almost the entire back assembly with
pieces fabricated in-house as opposed to ordering replacement pieces of the manufacturers,
saving more than $60,000 in the process. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Victor J.
Caputo)

7/20/2015 - MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. -- A member of the 22nd

Logistics Readiness Squadron vehicle management flight saved the Air Force more
than $60,000 through the use of in-house fabrication.
C.J. Slifko, 22nd LRS vehicle management flight allied trades mechanic, identified
the possibility of replacing the entire back assembly of a street-sweeper truck with
pieces made on-station.

Sep 2, 1945 Sep 2, 2015

See: https://ussmissouri.org/

"I've always thought that if we could do it ourselves, I would much rather do it

here," said Slifko, a retired senior master sergeant who worked in vehicle management his whole career. "Sometimes you can't help what happens when a truck
breaks, so our whole chain very strongly encourages us to come up with new ideas
and new ways to save money, and I'm all for that."
Continued on PG 2

Disclaimer: Truckin On is an unofficial newsletter published every month in the interest of serving Air Force active duty, civilian and retired vehicle operations
and maintenance personnel. Articles submitted by its contributors are not to be considered official statements by the U.S. Air Force.

Vehicle management innovation saves Air Force thousands

Continued from PG 1

Maintenance personnel noticed that the truck wasn't sucking

dirt and debris off the flightline at desired levels, so it was
brought to the vehicle maintenance shop. Slifko and his
coworkers inspected the sweeper and discovered the entire
roof was about to collapse due to rust.
"The manufacturer actually sells a kit to replace the entire
hopper assembly, and it ran in the neighborhood of $65,000,"
said Slifko. "It would not have been cost effective to buy that
part; it would have actually made the truck considered
unserviceable, leaving [the 22nd CES] with only two sweepers."

"We encourage the ability to come up with new ideas and

challenge what we typically do," said 2nd Lt. Kathryn Gossner,
22nd LRS vehicle management flight commander. "We are
extremely proud that our Airmen [and] our civilians are taking
that extra step to see think about how we can make this better,
how can we do things better."
This in-house fabrication not only saved the Air Force
thousands of dollars, it also showed how Airmen at all levels,
whether uniformed or civilian, are constantly innovating in their
fields.

"People are our priority," said Gossner. "Our people make the
Slifko proposed they fabricate the piece in-house instead, and mission happen. When they are able to make decisions, to take
he immediately started coordinating with various shops across ownership of their job and come to work inspired, things
base, including the 22nd Civil Engineer Squadron happen."
environmental element and 22nd CES welders to help safely
assemble the large amounts of metal used in the process.
The assembly took approximately 200 man-hours of labor
between Slifko and his coworker to complete, and ultimately
cost $3,000, saving more than $60,000 and exemplifying the
innovative mindset inside the 22nd LRS.

Driving in the Networked Age

That impressive track record has people projecting when the
first commercially available autonomous vehicles will hit the
streets.
But commercial availability is just a waypoint on the truly
transformative journey that lies ahead of us. And that means
theres a bigger question we should be considering now.
Namely, how soon will it be illegal to operate human-driven cars
on public streets?
At a conference in March, my friend and colleague Elon Musk
raised this proposition, exclaiming that people may outlaw
driving cars because its too dangerous.
Reid Hoffman
Entrepreneur. Product Strategist. Investor

In a follow-up tweet, Elon clarified that "Tesla is strongly in favor

of people being allowed to drive their cars and always will be."

A roadmap for navigating the transition from That perspective makes sense. Although Tesla is developing
human-controlled cars to a better driverless future
autonomous technologies, its high-performance cars are a blast
In the six-plus years that Google has been developing
self-driving cars, its test fleet has achieved an impressive safety
record: Nearly two million miles* of real-world autonomous
driving, eleven minor accidents, only one minor injury,
with none of the accidents caused by the self-driving cars
themselves (a passenger in a driverless car experienced minor
whiplash after being rear-ended by a human-driven car).

to operate in a traditional hands-on manner.

Many Tesla customers buy the company's cars precisely for this
reason, and as a smart and dedicated CEO, Elon will continue
to serve his customers well.
See the complete article at: Linkedin

VOps Wins Team Spirit Trophy

Instructors: SSgt Dillier and SSgt Imler. The student holding the VO Guidon is AB Casey Dechant. The SS Anderson rowers are A1C Charles
Shoemake and AB Kyle Aird Oharran. The SS Mini-O rowers are AB Alex Willis and AB Cory Cupp.

Put Us Down For Two

The day of the race was exciting. We had a great game plan,
be loud and be proud! Between the face paint, Air Force PT
By SSgt Michael Imler
shirts, and our 364 TRS/Det 1 Guidon, we knew we were taking
17 cardboard boats were entered into the annual Fort Leonard home the Team Spirit Award. Being surrounded by a bunch of
Wood Cardboard Boat Race this August. The Vehicle Army, a lot of engineers mind you, we had to come with our
Operations Schoolhouse has entered this race before, but this best, said SSgt Dillier.
year we said, put us down for two. The schoolhouse came
The races were tough, although some boats didnt make it two
together, both students and instructors, to help build a sturdy
feet, some were built so well you could have spent the whole
cardboard boat.
day fishing from them.
The SS Mini-O, which won Best-in-Show last year, was
The team that won the fastest overall time went to a couple
re-entered after a few patch ups were made. The new
engineer officers, but the SS Anderson and the SS Mini-O was
construction was named SS Anderson after A1C Carl L.
right behind them. The Vehicle Ops School stuck with their
Anderson Jr who was KIA in support of Operation Iraqi
game plan and did indeed leave with the Team Spirit trophy.
Freedom.
SSgt Anthony Dillier and SSgt Michael Imler really put their
experience and expertise into creating the new boat. Learning
from the mistakes and triumphs from last year, we were able to
put together a solid boat.
The construction took about two weeks. The students had a
great time helping out. As AB Cupp stated, It was nice to work
with and see our instructors outside of the classroom.

How you can find success before breakfast!

By Ellen Voie CAE, President/CEO
Women In Trucking, Inc.

Author Laura Vanderkam has written numerous books about the

traits of successful people. She claims the key to making
myself happy is NOT to be a perfectionist. In fact, she has
researched the traits of successful women and how much time
they devote to their careers.
The author was surprised to discover that women who work an
average of 35 hours per week earn about $37,000 per year.
However, the women in her study who earned in excess of six
figures annually averaged 44 hours per week. Thats only a
nine-hour per week difference for an almost threefold increase
in salary.
She tracked these women in a typical day and found a few
differences that the higher earning women had in common.
Ninety percent of them made time for daily exercise, they
watched less than five hours of TV each week (compared to the
national average of 34 hours), and they didnt skimp on sleep,
with an average of seven to eight hours of shut-eye each night.
Where did these women find time for so much sleep and keep a
consistent exercise schedule on top of a 44-hour work week?
Vanderkams suggestion is to remind ourselves that we have
choices and instead focus on what she calls, high value
activities. In her book, What Successful People do Before
Breakfast, the author suggests we make our routines start the
minute we hop out of bed.

Whether its exercising, spending time with your children,

spouse, pet, or just using the time for meditation or reflection,
morning sessions allow you to start the day having
accomplished something important to you and your self
development.
If you are interested in changing your morning routine, here are
five steps Vanderkam suggests adopting.
1.
Track your time. The only way to find out how
youre spending your day is to write down your
activities. The author suggests tracking an entire week
to see where you are wasting your minutes or hours.
2. Determine what would make a perfect morning?
What activities would you want to start your day with?
Running, meditating, taking an online class, doing
some writing, or reading to your kids are all things you
might want to list as your morning priority.
3.
Think through the logistics. How can you make
the schedule work? What changes will you need to
make to ensure your activity becomes a habit? Going
to bed earlier, setting your cereal and bowl on the
table the night before, and laying out your clothes
before you go to bed are all ways to eliminate some
morning time wasters so you can focus on your
activity of choice.
4.
Build the habit. It takes time to build a ritual, so
keep working at it and add a little bit at a time. Maybe
get up fifteen minutes early and then thirty minutes
after a week or so. Vanderkam suggests using bribery
to get yourself motivated. Promise yourself something
fun once youve started sticking to your new routine.

5. Tune up as necessary. Your circumstances might

cause you to adjust your new schedule as needed,
If it has to happen, then it has to happen first, Vanderkam
but dont give up on the idea of doing something for
claims. Our willpower is much stronger in the morning, so we
yourself before breakfast.
should focus on the activities that might not get accomplished
otherwise. For example, dont schedule laundry or Everyone has the same amount of time each day; its how we
housecleaning, because these are duties that you can find time choose to spend those minutes that separates the high
for later because they MUST get done.
achievers from the rest of the group. Determine what you can
Vanderkam suggests devoting early morning time to nurturing eliminate and define your own high value activities and you
your career, your relationships, or yourself. Her clients keep a might just find yourself climbing the corporate ladder more
time log of their daily activities and look for slots that allow them quickly.
to be focused and to make the activity a habit.
4

Trucking News
Trucking groups, carriers weigh in on
FMCSAs proposed CSA changes
by Matt Cole

CCJ Commercial Carrier Journal

We find this very troubling because the agency is missing an

opportunity to improve safety by placing more focus on high-risk
carriers. ATA also criticized FMCSA for making the hazmat
BASIC public while the industry is pushing to have less publicity
of the program.

ATA has repeatedly called on the agency to remove the scores

The comment period for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety CSA produces from public view while it fixes these serious
Administrations proposed changes to the Compliance, Safety, issues, Graves said. Ironically, while Congress is putting final
Accountability program closed last week, and several major touches on legislation to require that FMCSA take this step, the
agency is only proposing superficial changes to the system and
trucking organizations and companies weighed in.
actually suggests making more flawed data public.
The FMCSA is proposing to take yet another BASIC score
public, one of several changes its proposing for the Safety Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association: OODIA
Measurement System, which the agency uses to measure the took a similar approach as ATA, stating that none of the
safety of motor carriers and prioritize carriers for intervention proposed changes resolve the fundamental problems with the
system that cause it to damage good carriers safety reputations
actions.
and not accurately identify the worst motor carriers.
Contributor: Billy Dover, CMSgt (Ret/2T1)

OOIDA encourages the agency to scrap the current system,

pursue a more aggressive effort to identify the real factors that
cause crashes, and use that information to create an objective
safety standard that is accurate and reliable. Once it creates
such a system, it should devise more effective strategies to
intervene with motor carriers who are truly at a higher risk for
crashes.
FedEx: FedEx states its concerned that the flaws in the CSA
program make carriers scores unreliable.

In addition to taking the hazmat BASIC public, the agency

wants to lower the interventional threshold of the vehicle
maintenance BASIC to 75 percent from its current 80 percent,
thus targeting more carriers, and raise the intervention
threshold of the controlled substances BASIC to 90 percent
from its current 80 percent, thus targeting fewer carriers.

FedExs top priority is safety and that includes compliance with

the FMCSAs safety regulations. While FedEx supports efforts
by the FMCSA to improve the SMS, and thus the CSA program,
FedEx is concerned that the totality of flaws in the CSA
program, not just those problems identified and addressed in
this Notice, collectively make motor carriers CSA scores
unreliable and not reflective of crash risk.

Con-way: Con-way said it supports adjustments to the

intervention thresholds to better prioritize carriers for
American Trucking Associations: ATA says FMCSA is intervention and roadside inspections to determine if the carrier
missing an opportunity to improve safety with the proposed rule. maintains appropriate safety programs to prevent crashes.
FMCSA wants to change CSA intervention thresholds, The company added, though, that it doesnt support public
make hazmat category public
display of information that does not reflect an individual carriers
Heres a look at some of the comments that were submitted:

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration published June

29 proposed changes to its Compliance, Safety, Accountability
safety program, including lowering some intervention
thresholds, raising others ...

safety performance. FMCSA should take great care to use data

and violations that have a direct relationship to crashes.

A violation that statistically but indirectly relates to crashes does

not mean the carrier is unsafe, and that data should not be
After having a year to consider the recommendation from the displayed to the public and should be used to a much lesser
National Transportation Safety Board-requested Independent extent to focus enforcement resources if at all.
Review Team to distinguish form and manner violations from
those that cause crashes, FMCSA appears to have dismissed it Editors Note: For additional links to this article see
out of hand, said Rob Abbott, ATA Vice President of Safety original story at Proposed CSA Changes.
Policy.
5

Local Government Succession Planning Stealing

from the Air Force Again!
By Gary McLean, SMSgt (Ret/2T3)
Fleet Manager, City of Lakeland, Florida
Much like Air Force base fleets, local government fleets dont fit
a template when it comes to shop composition and operations.
Our fleets tend to be extremely diverse, encompassing every
established mission. Local government and Air Force fleet
organizations closely resemble each other at the nuts and bolts
level, especially compared to private sector maintenance. With
that, it takes a special person with established skills and abilities
to run a local governments maintenance shop operation,
somebody whos come up through the organization at the entry
level who knows the setup down to its core. What we call
upgrade training in the Air Force, local government calls
succession planningdifferent name, same concept.
As the newly hired fleet manager at City of Lakeland, I was immediately faced with a need to hire a foreman, with one retiring
within 6 months. In 2009, succession planning was just
something that was being talked about in Lakeland, and our
department essentially had no real plan, especially within Fleet.
Thankfully, we hired an internal candidate that was up to the
task of juggling prioritization and management of separate lines
of preventive, intermediate, and major maintenance to light,
medium, heavy, and specialty vehicles of all types. Knowing we
couldnt get that lucky twice, it was apparent we needed a real
succession plan.

Looking at our construct, it was obvious that we needed to

succession-train ALL floor employees for higher positions, since
our method of outside hiring is to hire at the entry level and train
them to the operating philosophy of our division. Knowing that
benchmarking (stealing) is the highest form of flattery, we
obtained what we needed from the 2T3XX career field
education and training plans (CFETP) and adapted what fit our
product.
The beauty of Air Force vehicle maintenance training
documents is that besides the wartime-related ancillary stuff,
they translate very well to local government fleet needs.
Essentially, our succession plan straddles the 2T3XX task
certification listings. Like the CFETPs, our task certification lists
we developed arent much more than cut and paste
spreadsheets we reshaped to delineate required ability and
knowledge at each classification and all duties and maintenance
actions. Just like the CFETP task certifications, ours document
progressively more difficult maintenance actions going up the
classification ladder to the point of minor supervisory work at the
highest technician level. Like the Air Force process, our method
includes over-the-shoulder observation of employees, providing
advanced training, encouraging ASE certification, providing
in-house supervisory classes, and promoting the best of the
lower grade technicians up through the technician ranks to
eventually compete for our Senior Automotive Mechanic
position. This position is the bridge to foreman and shop
supervisor positions, with potential candidates fully immersed in
what it takes to run the shop operation from all angles.
Our succession training is bearing fruit as weve promoted
technicians from the lowest grade to mid-tier positions based on
the task certification process. Concurrently, the certification
process identifies technicians that need more development who
may have been mistakenly promoted in the past.
The succession plan will continue to provide paths to higher
mechanic positions over the next two years, hopefully
culminating in providing fully capable successors to fill foreman
and supervisor positions that will vacate in the next four to six
years.

Succession planning at the local government level is as

essential to continuity and minimal interruption as we lose our
folks to promotion and retirement as it is for Air Force
organizations. We believe weve built the right tool to enable
true succession by using an established best practice, and with
Anthony Majkiewicz, Mechanic II, undergoes task certification by Phil
continued adjustment and evaluation of the program, were
Chaffin, Fleet Maintenance Supervisor, in preparation for potential
confident in our strength and efficiency going forward. Once
promotion.
again, Air Force vehicle maintenance provides the way and
Our succession plan sprang from our efforts to achieve were proud to steal those ways day in and day out, whether
accreditation through the American Public Works Association, safety, training, or using vehicle equivalents for budget planning
when we addressed the need to formalize our divisions training and staffing calculations. As always, aim high!
program.
6

Hydrogen fuel vehicles get ready at Honolulu In a 2014 report conducted by the state, more than 70 percent
of Hawaii's fuel came from oil. HNL is the second largest fuel
International Airport
user in the state. Change isn't cheap.
By Mike Cherry
KITV News
Published Jul 30, 2015

Buses at Hickam Air Force are being assembled at just over

$400,000 a pop. Osserman says his contractors are close to
cutting that price down considerably. He says these vehicles are
more cost effective in the long run.
"I mean, the equipment has very few moving parts and
generates electricity in the battery. It lasts a long time. If you
look at the batteries that we use they're at a 10-year life point
already. The only reason we don't keep 'em is because there's
newer technology that's better," said Osserman.
There are two hydrogen fuel stations in the state. One is here
on Hickam Air Force Base. The other is on the Big Island. Two
of these buses will end up there, shuttling between the visitor
center and Thurston Lava tube at Volcano.

HONOLULU
It's one of the state's leading entities in fossil fuel use. But, in
hopes of cutting into our state's dependency on oil, Honolulu
International Airport is on the verge of swapping its Wiki-Wiki
shuttles with vehicles that run on clean energy.
Click here to watch Mike Cherry's report.
Building a greener bus is fuel for Stan Osserman.
"How far can one travel on this fuel cell alone? This bus can do
between 130 and 150 miles on the tank -- two tanks of
hydrogen," said Osserman, who is director of the Hawaii Center
for Advanced Transportation Technologies

Editors Comments: The Hawaii Center for Advanced

Transportation Technologies (HCATT) and the United
States Air Force have enjoyed a long partnership and
proud history in the development of alternative fuel
vehicles and renewable energy infrastructure in the
State of Hawaii.
For its mission, history, overview, and a chronological
list of accomplishments and on-going projects, visit
HCATTs website at: http://www.htdc.org/hcatt.html.

This 25-seater is currently one-of-a-kind. But, in the next 18

months, Osserman's goal is to make a fleet of them and swap
them out with the gas-thirsty Wiki-Wiki shuttles at Honolulu
International Airport.
"Airport's ideal for a couple reasons. For us, it's ideal because
we're already doing Air Force work with Air Force equipment
and flight line. So a lot of the work that we're doing translates to
a 747 tow vehicle. Or a bus that shuttles folks to and from their
hotels," said Osserman.

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Bus

Osserman's dream goes hand-in-hand with Gov. David Ige's

plan to have 100 percent renewable energy throughout the
islands.
"If we can develop a hydrogen bus to deal with that challenge,
then we'd be able to demonstrate as a transportation fuel but
also give us experience with hydrogen vehicles and let us know
what the benefits and limits are," said Gov. Ige.

Part Spider, Part Car: The Swincar

Can Drive Over Basically Anything
Four wheels, four motors, unlimited fun in one
crazy package
By Ryan Beckler on Aug 03, 2015
Contributor: Reade Holzbaur, WS-12 (Ret/2T3)
Self driving cars are cool, so are electric cars that can
accelerate faster than the worlds most expensive police
cruiser. But none of them can navigate the road quite like this On its website, the luminaries behind this ingenious piece of
vehicle out of France.
machinery say, After many years of research, reflections,
Behold Swincar: A car that moves like a nimble spider, and with essays and developments, we are now ready to involve you in
independent suspension and a motor for each of its four our adventure It will allow you to rediscover the pleasure of
walking in the mountains, in forests, in fields or along the beach
wheels, can tackle just about anything in its path.
enjoying the fresh air, the sound of the wind, waves or birds
The Swincar utilizes tilting technology that allows each axel arm
without noise or air pollution.
and wheel to act independently, making the traverse of deep
Now that Google Earth has given us a vivid look at the Mars
ditches look easy and surprisingly comfortable.
landscape, the Swincar would seem like the perfect vehicle to
Editors Note: See video in the next column...
navigate the Red Planet. Your move, NASA.

Requiem for the Humvee, as the

Army readies for the next war
By Christian Davenport July 23
Contributor: Dan Berlenbach, CMSgt (Ret/2T3)

For sale: military Humvee in jungle green or desert tan.

Great for hauling cargo, artillery and soldiers. Can ford
rivers, traverse sand dunes and bound over rocky terrain. Not
recommended for heavy urban combat or mine-laden roads.
Bidding starts at $7,500.
After a storied career that spanned the 1989 invasion of
Panama, the 1991 Persian Gulf War, Bosnia, and the wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States fleet of Humvees is
entering its twilight, and the vehicles are being sold to the
highest bidder by the dozen. The vehicle is an icon of the U.S.
military that replaced the Jeep and spawned a gas-guzzling
commercial cousin that symbolized American ego and
extravagance.
But now the Army wants a tougher, yet nimble vehicle, light
enough so that a helicopter could fly it around, but
resilient enough to withstand bomb blasts.

This 2014 photo shows military Humvees being turned to scrap metal at
a federal facility in Spencer, Ind. The U.S. Army vehicles date back to
the 1980s. (AP Photo/The Herald-Times, Jeremy Hogan)

See full story at: Requiem

for the Humvee

8

Iconic Military Truck Makes Last Ride to Museum at The 5th Combat Communications Group deployed in full force
Robins AFB
to both of those disasters, so the truck most likely was used in
Macon Telegraph / Jul 29, 2015 / by Wayne Crenshaw

both places. While the museum truck was an Air Force vehicle,
Rowland said it will be appreciated by Army veterans as well
because it is the same M35 the Army used.
Phoenix Management, a contractor for the 78th Logistics
Readiness Squadron, restored the truck. The 5th Mob had
planned to turn it over for a surplus auction, but the museum
found out about it and asked if it could have it.
Henry Kirkpatrick, a body mechanic with Phoenix, and two other
people did the work on the truck. Most of the work involved
rounding up some missing parts and painting it, he said. He
drove it to the museum Tuesday, making a stop at 5th Mob
headquarters where a few airmen there came out to bid it
farewell.

A tow truck followed in case the M35 didn't make it. As he

shifted through the gears, Kirkpatrick described what it's like to
The M-35 started as a 1949 REO Motor Car Company design for a 2 ton drive the behemoth.
all-wheel-drive truck. The original 6-wheel M-34 version was quickly
superseded by the 10-wheel M-35 design. (U.S. Air Force photo by Ray
Crayton)

"Not fun," he said. "I can't imagine driving this thing six hours
across country."

But if the military had consulted Master Sgt. Casey Hylton, a 5th
ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE -- An era rumbled to an end at the
Mob mechanic who worked many times on the museum's truck,
Museum of Aviation on Tuesday.
the M35 would never have been replaced. He said its capacity
The last M35 cargo truck at Robins made a final trip from the to run on most any fuel can be critical in a combat area where
78th Logistics Readiness Squadron to its new home in Hangar multiple nations with different types of fuel are operating.
One at the museum.
"I think it's a mistake for the military in getting rid of it because
The M35 is a military icon that for decades has hauled troops of its simplicity," he said as he saw it on its last journey. "To fix
and supplies in combat zones around the world. Because it and repair this vehicle in the field, it is very, very quick."
could carry 2.5 tons, it was commonly called "Deuce and a
The 5th Mob is one of the longest serving units at Robins, but it
Half."
doesn't fly planes. The truck gives it some notable
The one delivered to the museum arrived at Robins brand new representation at the museum, Hylton said. "It shows what we
in 1988 and has been operated by the 5th Combat are capable of doing and what we have been doing," he said.
Communications Group, commonly known as the 5th Mob, the
entire time.
The truck is famed for its ruggedness, simplicity, ease of repair
and ability to run on most any fuel. In a pinch, it can even run
on used motor oil.
Mike Rowland, curator of the museum, said the truck is beloved
by military members, even if modern trucks have greater
capabilities on paper.
"When you are out in the field and your fancy new vehicle
breaks down, but you can go fix this with a pocket knife and a
toothpick and some bubble gum, well that says a lot," Rowland
said. "This is the truck that's going to get you out of trouble."
While the museum's truck never deployed overseas, it probably
served some important missions. That includes delivering Master Sgt. Casey Hylton, a mechanic with the 5th Combat
supplies to Hurricane Katrina victims and responding to the Communications Group, checks out the restoration job on an M35 truck he
worked on for 12 years. WAYNE CRENSHAW wcrenshaw@macon.com
Mother's Day tornados in Macon.
9

The Survey Says.

Whats the craziest (most unusual) thing youve seen GLENDA FERRARA:
done or been asked to do with an Air Force vehicle?
During the first Iraq war, I was at HQ TAC/ACC. I was charged
Editors Note: Heres a little trivia for
you. If the title The Survey Says
sounds slightly familiar, the reason
might be that its a line host Richard
Dawson used frequently on the old
TV game show, Family Feud.

to task and send vehicles. Command fleet managers responded

well, but most failed to track them and dropped them from
record. I knew I would be charged to find TAC vehicles and kept
pretty good records. Monumental task. I found out a young Lt
had a pickup assigned to him and tried to put it aboard a cargo
aircraft to send back to his home base. Pretty funny.

We also used the same title for our

March survey. It seems to fit...

I found and accounted for all the TAC vehicles. When I was
assigned next to Beale AFB, a civilian working in fleet asked me
about a particular forklift she had on record, but it was missing. I
told her that I had been assured that it was sent to salvage in
ROSS MANGUS:
country. Imagine my surprise when I went on a tour of Beale's
My commander directed me to take him 4-wheeling in a detachments in the UK only to find that very forklift over there.
HMMWV at a bombing range near Misawa Air Base, Japan. We transferred ownership and had it salvaged once again.
The cops left a stalled HMMWV on the beach front and the tide
changed. The HMMWV was left covered by the ocean for about DOUG STEWARD:
three months and my commander wanted to go out to the range Although I might not describe it as crazy, I would say the most
and see the HMMWV for himself.
unconventional use of an Air Force vehicle Ive ever seen is
He told me to pull a running HMMWV out of WRM for the ride after the 1991 Mt Pinatubo eruption in the Philippines. We
out to the range. Once we got to the range he said, "I want to evacuated to the Pampanga Agricultural College in a rural area
of the province, roughly 14 miles east of Clark Air Base.
take a few dunes." I told him no, but he said it was an order!
We were there for a week and had to improvise because there
were no amenities whatsoever; we had cover from the sun and
While stationed in Guam and working in Allied Trades, a
rain and ash, but thats about it...slept on concrete floors, ate
Peacekeeper was brought in with both back doors bent. The
cold MREs, etc. After a couple of days working in the sweltering
Cops had backed it into a building with the back doors in the
heat, humidity, and volcanic ash, we all needed a shower...bad.
open position and the doors were bent in a nice backwards
So, leave it up to our troops to come up with an ingenious
curve.
solution: they converted a P-18 fire truck (water tanker) into a
Our maintenance officer, Mr. Alex Smith, would not let us VDP community shower. Needless to say, lines formed quickly for
the vehicle for doors for any reason. His exact words were this small but much appreciated luxury.
alwaysSgt Taylor you have been stationed in Southeast Asia
long enough to know that you do not VDP a vehicle for (just fill
in the appropriate condition)
DON TAYLOR:

My reply was always the same, Mr. Smith, we are not in

Southeast Asia; we are in Guam and (just fill in the appropriate
answer)
Well, we ended up heating the doors with a rose bud torch,
probably a couple of them, and backing the vehicle into a
concrete wall using spacers to bend the doors back into place.
Then we welded them shut until we received new doors from
COPARS in the Philippines.
I went back to Guam for a third tour, and I think the
Peacekeeper went to DRMO with those doors welded shut. We
either didnt receive the news doors or they were not installed.
Mr. Smith had moved back to the states and Mr. Aracich was
now in charge. Mr. Smith taught all of us that there are ways to
not VDP a vehicle.

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Before he climbed into his new toy, I and the guys that worked

Whats the craziest (most unusual) thing youve seen on it told him it was a great idea, but we were sure it wasn't
going to work; good luck! In fact, I told him that we were sure
done or been asked to do with an Air Force vehicle?
the first explosive he encountered was going to blow the blade
off. He said he was sure it would work. So off he went, proud
What is the craziest thing Ive seen done or been asked to do as he could be with his new toy. The way he positioned
with an Air Force vehicle?
standing in the turret, he looked like Gen. Patton himself.
PAT MCCLAIN:

Well, this vehicle wasn't an "Air Force" vehicle, but it was being
used by the Air Force on Air Force business, so I think it
qualifies. We did a lot of things to keep vehicles in service
during my 21 years in the Air Force that required a lot of
imagination and ingenuity at times, but this beats
everything else we ever did.
During Desert Storm I was stationed at Riyadh in Saudi Arabia
and ran the maintenance shop there for eight months. A week
or so after the air campaign started, a SMSgt from a nearby
EOD unit rolled up in an M60A2 tank he had somehow gotten
from the Army.

A few weeks later the ground assault started and sure enough
our EOD buddy and his group were pushed into service
immediately and he took his new "mine clearing tank." About a
week later we got word that the EOD guys had put our
modified tank right in front of their operation to lead the clearing
of a mine field. And just like we had warned them, the very first
mine the blade encountered detonated and blew the grader
blade off instantly. I was told it landed about 50 yards from the
tank. Luckily no one was hurt. None of the enemy was there to
see it happen either. If they had been, I'm sure they would have
been laughing so hard they wouldn't have been able to fight
anyway. We never saw our EOD friend again.

He wanted us to mount a road grader blade on the front of the

tank so he could plow mines for the ground assault later. The THOMAS PICARELLA:
SSgt picking him up was trying his best not to laugh. The SMSgt
In the early 1980s there was a serious international fuel
showed us his drawing on a legal pad and then told us his plan.
shortage. During that same time period, we received a
He wanted us to weld four big coil springs to the front of the requirement from headquarters for our unit to participate in a
tanks armor and then weld the grader blade to the springs. He study involving material handling equipment usage over a
figured if he encountered an explosive, the springs would minimum period of miles/hours.
absorb most of the blasts energy if it detonated.
As the squadron air terminal manager, it was my responsibility
I asked how he was going to raise and lower the blade. His to monitor the studys progress. The scope of the study involved
reply was to weld the blade just so it cleared the ground during coordination with, and execution by, vehicle operations/
travel on hard surface. The blade would then dig in a couple of maintenance, and the air freight sections personnel.
inches into the sand and provide the mine clearing he
Being a mobile aerial port, and with low workload requirements
envisioned.
during a slow period at home station, we were generating
We tried to tell him there was no way our little, locally-bought substantially less than minimum hours/miles to satisfy the
welding machine was going to be able to weld anything to the studys requirements. When I briefed the squadron commander
armor because of its metallic alloy. He insisted that it could be on the situation, he indicated that we should operate the
done and since we really werent too busy at the time we equipment at minimum requirements, regardless of the
figured, what the hell, we'd humor him and give it a try.
workload situation.
Well, one of my techs was an artist when it came to
welding, and even with the lightweight welder we had
purchased downtown he was somehow able to weld the springs
to the tanks armor and the blade to the springs just high
enough to clear the ground.

In response, I recommended notifying headquarters of our

workload situation, adding the fuel shortage issue as reasons
for our inability to meet their requirements. As a result, the
squadron commander relieved me of the material handling
equipment study and gave the task to an officer reporting to me;
About a week later I called our EOD guy and told him the tank however, not in vehicle operation/maintenance, or the air freight
was ready and to come get it. When he got there you would sections.
have thought it was Christmas. He was dancing around the tank The squadron commanders newly tasked officer had vehicles
saying, "That's exactly what I wanted; wow, you even painted parked in out-of-sight locations, with their engines running long
the blade and springs to match the camo pattern on the tank," enough to meet the studys minimum hours/miles requirements.
and some other nice comments we all enjoyed.
After that, the craziness continued!
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The rumor is that a dozer and a couple loaders appeared

Whats the craziest (most unusual) thing youve seen outside the club, surrounding it, with a threat to bulldoze that
f-ing club to the ground, right now. If they couldnt drink in the
done or been asked to do with an Air Force vehicle?
DAN BERLENBACH:
I can think of a few. Funny how they all involve Red
Horse... While assigned to the 554th at Osan, I was directed to
drop the oil from an Oshkosh transit mixer. I did so and then my
supervisor advised me to crank it up and pull the hand throttle
too, so as to max out the revs. Thats gonna blow the motor I
exclaimed. I know, said the TSgtthats how we can bust the
one-time; LTI this POS and send it to salvage! The engine block
was glowing red as we all stepped back, then it screeched and
seized up. Sure enough, a few weeks later, off to DRMO it went.
Another concerned an M-151 jeep at Osan. Seemed that wed
gotten dispo instructions for one of our jeeps, however, those
boneheads at WRALC picked the wrong one (at least thats how
we understood it). Well, since we had the hardtop versions,
registration numbers were stenciled on the doors. Easy solution,
I was advisedgo change the doors with the one thats always
in shopits a pain in a##! Miraculously, in 5 minutes 66K201
became 66K208the POS went to DRMO, the good one
stayed (did I mention it was assigned to the shop?) and the
serial numbers on the AF Form 1828? I dont know what
happened there.
The next one happened in Florida. The 823rd was TDY at Avon
Park Bombing Range, doing some roadwork. They had dumps,
dozers, loaders, etc. The range had a lot of gators, something
new for the dirt boys and mechanics to play with. Somehow
there wasnt much dirt to move and the troops were pretty much
hanging out, taunting some younger (5 foot or so)
gators. Chasing them around, generally messing with them to
provoke a reaction.
Heythat loader has a 4-yard bucket, Ill bet we could get one
of the gators in there; that would really piss him off. I was a SrA
then and volunteered to get a loader, took it into the swamp and
managed to scoop up a gator. And yes, he was MAD! Hissing
and sort of croaking, that guy was super POd. Everyone took
turns provoking him as best they could until the MSgt came
back and chewed them all out. What were you thinking, he
said!
Finally, there is the urban legend about a club in a deployed
location several decades ago. I can neither confirm nor deny the
amount of alcohol consumed at a hooch bar that was half
underground, sort of a bunker type building in a desert
land. There had been a lot of drinking and someone had the
audacity to suggest to those who had been drinking the most
that they probably should call it quits, and in fact, should leave
the club since they were being obnoxious.

club, then no one could!

Naturally a lot of brass showed up, along with some SPs, and
some sort of drunken compromise was reached, the equipment
stood down.
JOE CUPURDIJA:
I was transferred from the vehicle maintenance officer course at
Chanute AFB, IL in 1964 to the vehicle maintenance shop at
Patrick AFB, FL.
I was a wet behind the ears second lieutenant thinking I would
be the maintenance officer. That excitement was squelched
when I walked into the maintenance office on the second floor
of this aircraft hangar on the Banana River. In the first office
(one of three) sat two secretaries and CMSgt Adams,
maintenance superintendent.
In the next office was George Reynolds, deputy maintenance
officer. George was a GS-14. CWO4 Nick Vislocky sat in the
next office. There were no other offices. So, here I am, 2LT Joe
Cupurdija, answering to CWO Vislocky. As I think back, my stop
there was meant to be temporary, as 1 year later I was once
again PCSd. There lies another story.
Anyway, I figured I was there to learn, and learn I did. As the
only commissioned officer in the squadron, other than our
commander, Major Raper, I was also the administrative officer.
You name it and I did it.
However, one day came when I was asked to visit the Harris
Corporation, down the road from Patrick in Satellite Beach.
There I was asked to witness a transformation of an E-100 Ford
Econoline van into a tracking vehicle of rockets taking off from
Cape Canaveral (not yet named Kennedy Space Center).
There in the shop sat this van with four square holes cut out of
the side of the van, two on each side. On either side were four
outriggers, two on each side. The van was being configured to
take photos and film of each space shot.
The idea was to drive the van to a remote spot, extend the outriggers, and open the camera doors. After the shot, the film
would be would be retrieved and taken back for analysis.
There was only one problem, as it was told to me by the shop
foreman. Once the vehicle was equipped with the cameras and
outriggers, it was unable to be driven. All the equipment
installed in it made the van too heavy to move.
I really dont know the outcome as I was PCSd to Wheelus AB,
Libya, paradise of the Mediterranean.
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Well, what do you do? I went over and overrode the outriggers

Whats the craziest (most unusual) thing youve seen and stowed the front ones but left the rear ones just off the
ground as a last-ditch fail-safe to stop the truck from tipping.
done or been asked to do with an Air Force vehicle?
I started it up, and crawled the truck at about mph, feeling the
front tires continually leaving the ground in little hopping
Ive done lots of stupid things in Air Force vehicles, but almost
motions. That was the longest 200 feet I ever drove in my
always because of my judgment, good or bad. However, the
career, and somehow nothing went wrong although I did dig a
worst one I can remember was an order screamed at me by a
few divots with the rear outriggers as they kept the truck from
flag officer back in the 1980s.
tipping more than a couple of inches.
Back in the grand old days of the Air Force when SAC, MAC,
The C-5 was still late, but only a few minutes, and I still had my
PACAF, TAC, and USAFE were the big dog MAJCOMs, things
stripes and career intact. It took me about four hours to get the
wereprecarious under certain situations.
boom cradled and park the truck off the main drag, just in time
For instance, MAC missions that didnt take off on time caused for the OMS drivers to return to see what was going on. I sure
serious problems for officer promotions, and supposedly cost hope somebody from that squadron got fired over that mess!!!!!
the Air Force thousands of dollars for every minute they spent
being late for launch. This stress could result in some truly GREG MORRIS:
amazing actions taken.
Utapao Thailand 1974/5. I did not see the incident, but I did see
The worst offense against a MAC mission in those days was to the results of as I call it, Seemed like the right thing to do at the
bust the launch time of a C-5. Already with a vaunted time scenario.
GARY MCLEAN:

reputation for unreliability and seemingly always breaking down

at Clark AB, Philippines, C-5 on-time departures were the holy
grail of MAC. With that priority set, people did insane things to
ensure they took off on time.

A bucket truck (high reach bucket truck I think we called them)

was being used to repair a B52 aircraft upper boom that would
not raise or lower. The truck was in a position where the boom
had to be raised then lowered into the cradle to move the
bucket truck. The operators decided it was an emergency as the
boom had lowered (leaked down) close to the aircraft. The
course of action they decided on was to bring in another bucket
truck and use it to raise the boom of the malfunctioning truck.

Any special purpose mechanic assigned to a MAC base or a

base that supported MAC airlift where C-5s roamed had to deal
with the Calavar Condor, a 125-foot aerial unit used to perform
exterior maintenance on C-5 tail sections (also used for Public
Affairs high-altitude photography and hazing technicians).
The plan was to strap the upper boom of the operational truck to
These trucks were about as reliable as C-5s, so standby the upper boom of the malfunctioning truck and try to raise
mechanics usually couldnt go the entire week of their standby it. End results: 2 buckets with upper booms destroyed. They
then moved the operational truck, which was not operational
duty without responding to a broken Condor.
now, and used an aircraft towing vehicle to drag the other
The worst of those breakdowns was when a Condor was stuck
bucket truck away from the aircraft.
with the boom suspended over a C-5 with an impending
launch. This was the scenario when I was called out to repair a They eventually did call vehicle maintenance and I was one of
the technicians who responded. We were able within minutes to
Condor with an inoperable aerial boom.
use the override controls in the lower boom section to move
Getting to the hardstand where the C-5 was parked, I found the
what was left of the boom back into the cradle
Condor completely extended over the aircraft with no OMS
somewhat. Both upper booms were cracked and looked
Condor driver in sight anywhere. The loadmaster informs me
extremely funny traveling toward the shop; I saw it more in a
they went to lunch.
sad way as I knew the mission critical level (MCL) cushion was
The mission commander is a 1-star getting his flying hours in gone. We had a MCL of 10 bucket trucks that must always be in
and he is hot, because the drivers left the vehicle behind and service with 12 assignednow we only had 10 in service. On a
nobody knows where they are.
positive note, the two bucket trucks that were out of service
He starts yelling at me to move the Condor NOW!!! I advised became great sources for parts.
him that with the boom stuck, trying to move the vehicle using One of many seemed like the right thing to do opportunities
the overrides could result in the truck tipping and the boom that I was involved with or was a part of that sure seem
hitting the aircraft. He tells me do it NOW!!!
irrational now, which is a nice way of sayingstupid.
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The investigation revealed that the water truck operators trainer

Whats the craziest (most unusual) thing youve seen (MSgt) had taught him the wrong procedure for the A-2.
done or been asked to do with an Air Force vehicle?
I was able to crawl into the cab and back the truck out of the
aircraft, but it was mangled beyond description. I thought theres
no way this truck can be repaired. However, we were in the
Its hard to pin down the craziest or most unusual thing Ive
Philippines and theyre firm believers in miracles. So, we sent
seen done or been asked to do with an Air Force vehicle. I
the truck off base to a contract shop and Filipino craftsmen
suppose, like many of you, I have a few that come to mind.
rebuilt the cabunbelievable job.
My number one of all time, however, is the Wolf Mobile at
Last but not least is an incident at Shemya during my tour there
Kunsan AB. I wrote about this vehicle in our December 2014
in 1974-1975. Shemya is treeless and covered by tundra. In the
newsletter, so I wont elaborate too much here. But for those
summer tundra thaws and becomes very soggy. I dont recall
who didnt see the article or dont know about this car, heres a
the reason why, but the civil engineers drove one of their dozers
brief description: The car was a standard, strata-blue, 1972
onto the tundra and it sank to the top of the tracksstuck.
Ford LTD sedan assigned to the wing commander. He had it
painted F-16 gray with the same two-tone color scheme as the Well, someone devised a hair brained scheme to retrieve it and
drove another dozer onto the tundra to tow it out. You guessed
aircraft, and with actual F-16 paint.
it; it sank too. By the time I arrived on the scene, they had
He also ordered the seats reupholstered with white tuck and
positioned a crane on a nearby road and was in the process of
roll leather that featured images of wolf heads on the seat
winching them back to solid ground.
backs front and rear. Wolf heads were also painted on both
GEORGE MCELWAIN:
front doors and the trunk.
ROGER STORMAN:

The wing commanders name was on each door and the slogan
stand tall; be a warrior was emblazoned across the trunk.
Later versions added drops of blood dripping from the wolfs
mouth and a horn that produced a wolf howl. It was quite a sight
to seeand hear.
The second story that comes to mind happened during my first
tour of Clark Air Base, 1970-1972. I worked in refueling
maintenance, aka Shop 6. One day a fuels guy, SSgt Angoco,
came to our shop and asked if I would back an A-2
demineralized water truck out of a KC-135 tanker.
No problem.then I thought about what he had asked me. I
said, Wait a minute; a KC-135 is a side-loading aircraft. You
cant transport a demineralized water truck on that aircraft. He
said, Just come with me. Well, we went out to the location on
the flight line and thats when I saw the truck embedded in the
fuselage of the aircraftHUGE HOLE!

In 1976 at Eglin AFB we received our first 100 FT High Reach

and it was sitting outside the shop as we performed an incoming
inspection. The truck was kind of finished, but we had not raised
the boom for its inspection. The maintenance officer, Major
Hobby, was determined to ride it to the top. I advised him that
we had not checked the boom operation, but the major insisted.
I gave him a quick "how to" and up it went, and as luck would
have it the breeze picked up and the major decided to come
down. Well, the boom was stuck and all of us together had to
get out the TO and look up the emergency procedures for letting
it down.
The boom was swaying in the breeze and all we could hear
were screams of GET ME DOWN! After many laughs under our
breaths, we finally managed the down procedure and the major
never bothered us for a check ride again.
TITO MASSA:

I asked the obvious question: How in hell did this happen? He

told me that the operator had placed the truck in drive position
and then pulled the axillary throttle on the control panel to begin
pumping. Once the engine revved up, the truck jumped the
chocks and ran into the aircraft.

While at Tuy Hoa Air Base, Vietnam in 66-67, I was working on

refueling equipment out of a Conex box. Our one and only 1200
gallon capacity Dodge diesel fuel servicing truck went belly up.
One of the energetic POL operators had somehow managed to
strip the differential gears out from under it.

Now, I cant speak for todays trucks, but to pump water from an
A-2 back then the transmission had to be in the neutral position,
not drive. The R-5 fuel truck, on the other hand, had a split-drive
transmission and PTO assembly. The operator manually
engaged the PTO while in neutral and then shifted into drive
mode (3-high) to pump fuel. In effect, the transmission was
disengaged.

Well, we had none on hand or in stock; we had a wrecked Ford

stake and platform truck that was going to be salvaged, so we
decided to cannibalize its differential and adapt it to the Dodge.
With a little engineering and lots of hoping and praying, we
managed to make it work. When my tour was over on 12 Dec
67, it was still going.
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As I crept across the causeways, traffic coming from the other

Whats the craziest (most unusual) thing youve seen direction barely had enough room to pass and I was over to the
right side of the road as far as I could get without taking out the
done or been asked to do with an Air Force vehicle?
FRANK MANGRUM:
Back in 1979, I was a young staff sergeant stationed at Patrick
AFB as an MHE/463L mechanic (47251C). My superintendent,
Harry Owen, called me to his office and offered me an
opportunity to volunteer for a special mission. Harry and I were
good friends and when he said special mission I knew it had to
be unique.
We supported a lot of Cape Canaveral sites and he asked me
how I would like a trip to the Florida Keys? Sounded good, but I
knew there had to be more. Sure enough, one of the tracking
sites down range used large balloons that looked like small
blimps packed with electronics to track launches from the Cape
and keep an eye on drug runners along the Florida coast.
They had a large International truck with a large winch on the
back that was used to launch and retrieve the balloons. The old
truck was junk and needed to be swapped out for a newer
M-Series truck and driven back to Patrick. They wanted to send
a mechanic for the swap out because it was very doubtful the
winch truck would make it back to Patrick without breaking
down.
I said sure, that sounds great, when do I leave? Of course we
all know what happens when you volunteer for anything! The
M-Series truck that I drove down to the Keys had a stretched
wheelbase frame and high flotation tires. That thing was wide
and barely fit between the lines of a standard size road.

bridge railings. And then I saw it coming - a Winnebago motor

home.
I slowed down to a crawl and held my breath as we
passed. Through the windshield of the motor home I could see
an elderly gentleman with wild eyes and a death grip on the
steering wheel. And then I heard it, the screeching, tearing of
metal as the motor home made contact with the guard rail on
the passenger side.
I could not stop, so I continued on until I could find a place to
safely pull over. No cell phones back then, so I sat there and
waited for the police. After an hour and a half no one showed up
so I continued on knowing if I was wanted, I could not hide in
this rig and I was going no place fast anyway.
Once back on the interstate things went better except for the
floating frontend and 45 MPH speed limit. Looking back, that
truck should have had highway tires installed before leaving the
site. But at the time I was simply being a good troop and doing
as I was told. Never did hear from the police??
ROGER ROBERTSON
In 1961 Hollywood made a movie called X-15 about the
experimental aircraft. It starred Charles Bronson among many
others. I was assigned to be on set and assist if needed. During
a break in filming, Charles Bronson brought out a reclining
lounge chair and put it beside the place I was sitting.

He was very friendly and visited with me while taking in the

Everything went pretty good until I reached the Keys. Have you sun. I was impressed that he ignored the women stars that
ever driven down to the Keys across the miles and miles of arrived on set and were doing their best to dominate the filming
bridges (causeways)? Needless to say, no one passed site.
me. Upon arrival at the site I saw the truck I had been sent One was pestering Charles and after telling her politely several
down to retrieve. I was shocked!
times to leave him alone, he spit tobacco juice toward her feet
This thing was huge and had an even huger winch mounted to
the frame on the back of the truck. It also had very wide, high
flotation tires and all I could think about was the trip back across
the bridges as this thing was even wider than the M Series I had
driven down from Patrick. After a good pre trip inspection to
make sure this thing was roadworthy, I headed home.

and told her to basically get lost. She got the message and left
in a huff.

I quickly found out the winch, which was very heavy, had been
mounted too far back on the frame which made the front end of
the truck very light. The light front end and high flotation tires
made for quite a ride. If not for the seat belt, I would have been
hitting my head on roof every time I hit a pothole or rough
section of road. Anything over 45 MPH and I lost all steering
because the front wheels were airborne!

I let my fianc (now my wife of 53 years) know I was in the

movie. She was in Indiana. She went to the movie but didnt see
me. When I got to see the movie, I discovered I had ended up
on the cutting room floor when they edited it.

I was given a part in the movie where I used an Air Force

sedan and drove a general (actor) up to the officers club. I ran
around and opened the door for him; he was met by a group
and they all went into the club.

Anyway, I enjoyed working on the set and meeting Charles

Bronson who became one of my favorite actors, particularly in
his series of vigilante movies killing thugs.
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We helped the crash recovery guys hook up cables to the

Continued from PG 15

Whats the craziest (most unusual) thing youve seen aircraft, then Jughead and I got on top of the rig and
waited. Right on time, we can see an aircraft flying low and fast
done or been asked to do with an Air Force vehicle?
RICHARD BUNCE:
Back in the early 90s I ran the Bare Base Vehicle Operations
Shop at Holloman. It was a unique little shop manned by Ops
guys, Fuels and a couple of CE Dirt Boys. We maintained a
fairly diverse WRM fleet and trained guys on all of it in support
of the Bare Base Mission. I loved that tour mainly due to the
crew I had and the unique mission at hand.
One day one of my dispatchers came to me with a request from
the Rescue Squadron at Kirkland. Just the day prior, one of
their Apaches had gone down in a very remote area north of
Holloman. The crew was beat up and bruised but otherwise
okay. The bird was in two pieces in the middle of the desert.
The crash recovery guys needed our help to do a couple of
jobs. First, they needed the main fuselage of the aircraft moved
from lying on its side to being upright so a Jolly Green could
come in and recover it. Next, they needed the tail boom section
of the aircraft moved to a flatbed for transport back to Holloman.
I had the expertise and the equipment to do it. First, the expert:
SSgt John Jughead Dees was my Assistant NCOIC and one
of hell of a crane operator. I also had a fairly new M936A2
wrecker in the yard that was perfect for the job. I coordinated
the time and the place and Jughead and I hit the road. We
found ourselves literally in the middle of nowhere at a makeshift
ECP to the crash site. The Commander told us what he wanted
and we knocked the job out pretty quickly. When we were
finished, I asked him if he needed anything else before we
headed back across the desert; he didnt but asked me if wed
like to see something pretty cool. I said sure. He told me to find
a good seat, pointed at a spot out in the desert and told me it
would begin in about an hour.

across the desert and that sound can only be a big ass
helicopter. Faster than you could really imagine it happening
that Jolly Green stopped dead-on above the downed Apache,
did a 180 over it, then dropped a cable out extremely quickly.
The recovery guys on the ground secured the cable and then off
it went. It couldnt have taken 5 minutes to hook the cables to
both aircraft and head back to Kirtland.
Now, with a 30 year career, Ive seen so many air-shows that
Ive lost count and saw some really cool stuff on gunnery ranges
and various other areas but that display of airmanship was
something to really be proud of. We found out later that they
were practicing a combat extraction.

8 military terms civilians

always get wrong
DAVID NYE JULY 15, 2015
We know its hard to keep track of military lingo and technical
terms, thats why weve published so many guides
(Air Force, Marine Corps, Army, Navy). But there are some
terms that the media especially Hollywood just cant stop
getting wrong when referring to the military.
1.

Bazooka

Photo: US Army Signal Corps

M936A2 Wrecker

Bazooka refers specifically to

a series of anti-tank rocket
launchers used from World
War II through the Vietnam
War. American troops today
do not fire bazookas. There
are modern rocket launchers
that do the job the bazooka
was once used for, but they
have their own names, like
the AT-4 and the SMAW.

See complete list at: Military Terms

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Transporters recall glory days in SAC

Randy Cox, Lt Col, USAF (Ret)

I had so much SAC time. I started out at Beale AFB (69) in

vehicle ops, then moved on to Kunsan AB (71-72) in vehicle
ops/TMO. After that I went to Whiteman AFB (72-73) in vehicle
mx, followed by Davis Monthan AFB (73-76) where vehicle mx
alone had 135 personnel. It was still a SAC base then with four
Larry Kearns, Col, USAF (Ret)
full wings (including the U2 wing before it moved to Beale) and
SAC will rise again! Just got my pocket SAC shield out from the an air division. Then it was on to San Vito De Normanni, IT as
desk drawer (keep it there just in case)it meant so many chief of transportation and then to SAC HQ (80-81).
different things to so many people, but few can empathize with I, along with Wayne Inabinette, headed all the staff assistance
those days gone by.every time I pass by Barksdale and see visits out of the transportation directorate for 3 years. Wayne
the B-52s launch or recover, I just have to pull off to the side of retired as a Lt. Colonel and is now deceased. I was gone on
the road and remember when they controlled the skyblack average one week of every month interestingly enough never
smoke and all.
made it to Minot, but I made three trips to Andersen AFB in
Editors Note: This is a follow-up to last months article on
the Strategic Air Command. It stirred the memories of several
Truckin On members who served in SAC. I thought, with
permission, I would share their stories with you.

Jeff Link, Col, USAF (Ret)

My first vehicle job in 1972 as a 2LT maintenance officer was at
97th Transportation, Blytheville AFB, AR (then Eaker AFB, then
it closed). That was a hoot being around B-52s and KC-135s,
and we even had an ancient C-124 fly in one day out of the
Mississippi ANG. Then a C-5 arrived and took a lot of our
Blytheville vehicles and other WRM to Andersen AFB Guam
(which actually was a SAC garden spot in the 1970s) in support
of Operation Bullet Shot and B-52 Arc Light operations over
Southeast Asia. You might recall, Bullet Shot was the shot
heard round the world."
I followed those vehicles with a PCS to Guam and 43rd
Transportation as vehicle ops officer in very early 1973, where I
blindly signed for a fleet of 1500 vehicles, 1100 of which had
been sent TDY from CONUS, including Blytheville. That
became a near disaster after the war when one 40-ft trailer
came up unaccounted for at the end of my PCS tour. It went to
salvage, but probably was not taken off the books in the old
B-3500 punch card supply system, plus Guam Navy R&D
records were worse. I had a report of survey hanging over my
head to pay for it until the day before I left The Rock.

Guam. I worked for Col Lindsay at SAC HQ and worked again

for him at the Pentagon when he was a Brigadier General.
After SAC, I was LGT for Electronic Security Command at Kelly
AFB for 3 years, then LGTV chief at USAFE, then vehicle &
equipment division deputy at AF/LETN, Pentagon.
As you can see, almost my whole career was in the vehicle
business. I grew up hot rodding and building engines and loved
it. I think the only other officer I knew that had a similar vehicle
intense career was Larry Kearns.
George McElwain, CMSgt (Ret/472)
I have several SAC assignments under my beltWalker AFB,
Offutt AFB, and Malmstrom AFB. I had the pleasure of traveling
with MSET, ORI, and SAV teams for vehicle maintenance and
traveled to most of the bases you spoke about. On one trip we
traveled to Grand Forks and it was my job to inspect the
vehicles on VDP status. I looked in the yard and found 3 - 6 feet
of fresh snow covering the vehicles...that was a pass for sure!
Vern Bales, CMSgt (Ret/472)

I was a "SAC trained killer" as well. I spent tours at Fairchild

AFB (63-64), Dyess AFB (65-67), Minot AFB (69-70), Offutt
SAC MSET inspections got started during the early 70s, and AFB on the SAC transportation staff (70-73), and Grand Forks
sadly flowed over to MAC by the time I got to Lajes AB in 1981 AFB (83-85). SAC really had it together. Wonderful experience!
as the 1605th Transportation/CC. The idea was worthy from a Ronnie Ward, SMSgt (Ret/2T3)
headquarters perspective, but it sure did take the shine off of
I was also a SAC trained killer, at Whiteman and Dyess! I
local knowledge and procedures. It was the beginning of the
remember the MSET inspections. I was a 3-striper assigned to
end for shade-tree mechanics. I used to have a cartoon of
Q C & E with a TSgt. We worked for the commander out of the
Moses walking off Mount Sinai with three tablets
orderly room and did the task evaluations and shop inspections
Commandments 1-5, 6-10, and SAC Supplement 1. I tried to
locally just like SAC MSET. The guys in the shop hated us.
find it on the Internet, but strangely its not there. Would
On our first MSET visit we got a 30-minute warning that they
love to share it if I still had it. It was a hoot.
were landing. We, along with vehicle ops, got transportation to
However, starting off in the most demanding command in those
the flight line and the first thing the MSET team did was inspect
days was not a bad thing back in the real Air Force, made
the vehicles, and the write-ups began. We came out with an
everything after SAC pretty much a cakewalk (not really!).
overall satisfactory, but it was one hectic week.
To err is human, to forgive is not SAC policy!
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