thedrifter
07-10-06, 08:10 AM
Choppers recalled to active duty
July 10,2006
CHRIS MAZZOLINI
DAILY NEWS STAFF
A number of Super Stallions are returning to the military rodeo, fresh from a decade-long respite at an aviation retirement farm.
The Marine Corps plans to bring a number of retired helicopters out of more than a decade of storage in hopes of bolstering a fleet facing shortages from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The first of at least seven refurbished CH-53E Super Stallion heavy-lift helicopters has already returned to active duty with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464 at New River Air Station. It marks the beginning of a multi-year plan to ease stress in a stretched-thin fighting force and save money in the process.
“We have lost aircraft for various reasons, everything from crashes to actual war to just getting old,” said Maj. Warren Bair, the CH-53 program manager at NAVAIR Depot at Cherry Point. “That has decreased the raw number of aircraft available to the Marine Corps.
“(This program) adds a raw number of aircraft to the bottom line that can get back into the mix. That will relieve the pressure on the fleet.”
The aircraft joined HMH-464 because the squadron lost two helicopters — and eight Marines and two airmen — in a tragic midair collision during a training flight off the coast of Djibouti in February.
It’s the first time a CH-53 has ever been pulled from storage and placed back into a squadron, Bair said.
One reason for that may be the staggering workload required to whip a dusty bird back into shape. Depot personnel spent 10 months on the aircraft, putting in 25,343 work hours. Hundreds of modifications, upgrades and repairs were needed to make the helicopter airworthy again. Everything from upgrading navigation equipment to replacing old rubber seals that cooked in the Arizona heat while stored.
“Things don’t rot, but they bake,” Bair said.
1st Lt. Thomas Mannino, the assistant maintenance officer for HMH-464, said the aircraft received a thorough work through before the squadron ever saw it.
“It basically got completely torn down to bare metal and inspected for structural damage,” Mannino said. “The majority of the airframe has been reworked by (the depot). They did all that work, painted it, test flew it and then delivered it to us.”
The aircraft was living its retired life at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, in the sprawling Arizona Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center, which houses about 5,000 military aircraft. Before storage, the crafts go through a detailed cleaning and preservation process to keep the machinery in as good condition as possible. According to the AMARC Website, the aircraft are washed, drained of fuel and replaced with lightweight oil that coats and protects the engine.
The aircraft are then sprayed with a water-based latex substance called “Spraylat,” which bars dust and keeps the aircraft relatively cool in the desert.
Some aircraft are even stored in large plastic bags, which allow personnel greater access to any spare parts that may be needed.
The Cherry Point Depot is currently restoring two more 53s. Bair said they will be delivered to a Marine Corps squadron sometime within the year. The plan is to fix up four more Super Stallions in pairs during the next few years, in hopes of having seven additional aircraft in the fleet by 2009.
The restoring program also has financial advantages for the military, Bair said. The cost of refitting an old bird is about $5 million. A new Super Stallion runs for about $27 million.
There’s more work to be done. Mannino said they have to double-check everything, and also make additional checks to ensure the helicopter is mission ready. That should take at least a couple of weeks.
“When we are done with that, she will be ready to fly any mission,” he said.
Contact staff writer Chris Mazzolini at cmazzolini@freedomenc.com or 353-1171, ext. 229.
Ellie
July 10,2006
CHRIS MAZZOLINI
DAILY NEWS STAFF
A number of Super Stallions are returning to the military rodeo, fresh from a decade-long respite at an aviation retirement farm.
The Marine Corps plans to bring a number of retired helicopters out of more than a decade of storage in hopes of bolstering a fleet facing shortages from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The first of at least seven refurbished CH-53E Super Stallion heavy-lift helicopters has already returned to active duty with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464 at New River Air Station. It marks the beginning of a multi-year plan to ease stress in a stretched-thin fighting force and save money in the process.
“We have lost aircraft for various reasons, everything from crashes to actual war to just getting old,” said Maj. Warren Bair, the CH-53 program manager at NAVAIR Depot at Cherry Point. “That has decreased the raw number of aircraft available to the Marine Corps.
“(This program) adds a raw number of aircraft to the bottom line that can get back into the mix. That will relieve the pressure on the fleet.”
The aircraft joined HMH-464 because the squadron lost two helicopters — and eight Marines and two airmen — in a tragic midair collision during a training flight off the coast of Djibouti in February.
It’s the first time a CH-53 has ever been pulled from storage and placed back into a squadron, Bair said.
One reason for that may be the staggering workload required to whip a dusty bird back into shape. Depot personnel spent 10 months on the aircraft, putting in 25,343 work hours. Hundreds of modifications, upgrades and repairs were needed to make the helicopter airworthy again. Everything from upgrading navigation equipment to replacing old rubber seals that cooked in the Arizona heat while stored.
“Things don’t rot, but they bake,” Bair said.
1st Lt. Thomas Mannino, the assistant maintenance officer for HMH-464, said the aircraft received a thorough work through before the squadron ever saw it.
“It basically got completely torn down to bare metal and inspected for structural damage,” Mannino said. “The majority of the airframe has been reworked by (the depot). They did all that work, painted it, test flew it and then delivered it to us.”
The aircraft was living its retired life at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, in the sprawling Arizona Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center, which houses about 5,000 military aircraft. Before storage, the crafts go through a detailed cleaning and preservation process to keep the machinery in as good condition as possible. According to the AMARC Website, the aircraft are washed, drained of fuel and replaced with lightweight oil that coats and protects the engine.
The aircraft are then sprayed with a water-based latex substance called “Spraylat,” which bars dust and keeps the aircraft relatively cool in the desert.
Some aircraft are even stored in large plastic bags, which allow personnel greater access to any spare parts that may be needed.
The Cherry Point Depot is currently restoring two more 53s. Bair said they will be delivered to a Marine Corps squadron sometime within the year. The plan is to fix up four more Super Stallions in pairs during the next few years, in hopes of having seven additional aircraft in the fleet by 2009.
The restoring program also has financial advantages for the military, Bair said. The cost of refitting an old bird is about $5 million. A new Super Stallion runs for about $27 million.
There’s more work to be done. Mannino said they have to double-check everything, and also make additional checks to ensure the helicopter is mission ready. That should take at least a couple of weeks.
“When we are done with that, she will be ready to fly any mission,” he said.
Contact staff writer Chris Mazzolini at cmazzolini@freedomenc.com or 353-1171, ext. 229.
Ellie