First Time Such A Move Has Been Undertaken Over
Land
A CH-47 Chinook helicopter was returned home to Fort Wainwright,
AK, by the joint efforts of Soldiers and Airmen working in Eielson,
AK, last month.
Chinook Readied For Transport
Soldiers from the 16th Combat Aviation Brigade worked alongside
Airmen here to complete the final stages of their redeployment. The
brigade was a vital part of the humanitarian effort Task Force
Denali in Pakistan where they distributed food and supplies, and
rescued people affected by the floodwaters. After the brigade
members and their equipment were transported to here using C-17
Globemaster IIIs, the Soldiers processed their return through the
joint mobility complex here before transport to Fort
Wainwright.
The CH-47's land-based transport proved a bigger challenge for
the Soldiers and Airmen. By transferring the helicopter to Fort
Wainwright using a trailer, Army officials were able to consolidate
their redeployment efforts. The process proved successful and was
repeated for the next four returning CH-47s.
"This move is unique because it involves moving a (CH-47)
Chinook helicopter over land during these weather conditions," said
Benjamin Barrio, the 354th Logistics Readiness Squadron assistant
installation deployment officer. "It's the first time a move like
this has been done."
Moving the helicopter took a lot of eyes and hands on the task
to ensure the aircraft remained in good condition. Airmen from
different squadrons assisted to accomplish the needed goals during
the move. Airmen operated the forklift to move the ramps in place
for the CH-47 to be pulled up and also provided security. "The idea
was fairly new," said Chief Warrant Officer 5 Steven Rosini, the
16th CAB tactical operations officer.
Globemaster
According to Mr. Rosini, the cold weather had to be considered
when planning the move. "This required an extra wide trailer built
especially for this over the weekend," he said. "I'm really happy
with everybody; we have everything in place for it to work out
right."
The CH-47 wheels were aligned with the ramp and pulled by cables
onto the truck. The helicopter was loaded onto the extra wide
trailer without the rotors attached in order to save space. "We
tried to make the move during daylight hours, which gave us a short
window to work in up here," Mr. Rosini said.
Even though weather conditions were a hazard and the strategy
was created within 10 days, careful planning and coordination by
Air Force and Army officials allowed the safe loading,
transportation and unloading for a return home and mission
complete.