RSSU.S. fighter jet transported back home using cargo jet
Aug 25
Air Force, Navy, News 451st Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron, Afghanistan, C-5, C-5 aircrew, C-5 cargo jet, C-5 Galaxy, C-5 jet, cargo get, Charles Miller, Defense Department, F/A-18, F/A-18 fighter jet, F/A-18 Hornet, F/A-18 Super Hornet, F/A-18 USAF, Fighter jet, Galaxy, Hornet, Hornet plane, Kandahar Airfield, Naval Air Station, Travis Air Force Base No Comments
The 451st Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron aerial port flight assisted the C-5 Galaxy’s loadmaster crew in successfully loading an F/A-18 Super Hornet into the Galaxy’s cargo bay on Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan.
The Hornet experienced malfunctions which caused it to divert and land at Kandahar Airfield while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom last March. Upon landing, the aircraft experienced hot brakes and upon stopping, both brakes were engulfed in flames. The Kandahar, Fire and Rescue extinguished the fire, but the right fuselage was severely damaged.
Charles Miller, the F/A-18 deputy program manager, and a team of four Defense Department civilians have been preparing to recover the aircraft in order to bring it back to the U.S. to Fleet Readiness Center Southwest to perform the necessary repairs since July.
The preparation included coordinating with senior leadership at the Navy’s Commander of Naval Air Forces and the Air Force’s Air Mobility Command in order to obtain the required certification to transport the aircraft back on a C-5 to Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, Calif.
“Typically, an aircraft would be flown back to the states if the damage was minor,” said Miller. “But this F/A-18 sustained substantial damage which our engineering support team determined to be critical and unflyable.”
The C-5 aircrew was eager for the opportunity.
“We’re willing to help any of our sister services who need it,” said Air Force Maj. Steven Hertenstein, the pilot of the C-5 Galaxy who is deployed from Travis Air Force Base, Calif. “Carrying cargo is what this aircraft was designed to do, and we’re glad to be a part this.”
Source: U.S. Air Force