C-5 first flight 50 years ago tomorrow

[Springer]

I read about a year ago that the C-5M still required about eight hours of maintenance for every hour of flight, which would be the same as its C-5A predecessor. But, who knows?

That is about what my plane is requiring as I track down an electrical issue....grrrrrrrrrrr

Great gear vids that were posted! On a related note after leaving the AF I was hired by a Travis AFB Reserve unit and had an Altus class date but was spared when by luck, received an airline offer. Another fork in the road of life.

 

[///AMG]

I’m curious how they are light years ahead. Can you give some examples so I can better understand the new capabilities these newer jets have that the old ones didn’t. Also, do enhancement in satellite technology contributed to the capabilities of these aircraft?

At an unclassified level, no, I cannot give you really any meaningful examples. I suppose the best way to think of it generically, is the difference between your 1980's Tandy or Apple computer, and the desktop computers people are rolling around with now.

 

[Lawman]

Every time .... every.... single..... time....

 

[gotWXdagain]

It’s normal to get aroused when you hear the C-5 engines spool up, right? Asking for a friend.

 

[denverpilot]

I'm wondering what stopped all this progress.

Nothing. A switch from a non-secret never-ending war, to mostly secret ones.

Count up the number of NRO satellite launches since the 70s and you’ll see where most of the continuously borrowed money via massive debt and devaluation of purchasing power went.

We have a new Cold War going on with the Chinese in the spy satellite game. Much less visible than the last Cold War with airplanes.

SpaceX wouldn’t be successful enough to launch Tesla Roadsters as PR stunts if it weren’t for their NRO launches and commercial launches with government uses on the schedule.

Hundreds of billions into airplanes in the past, hundreds of billions into space now. Whether one likes Trump or not, the “Space Command” thing is just to split the known USAF budget down the middle to do a “stock split” to allow people to swallow more space spending, and leverage when it failed to say “Well USAF budget still needs to go up, even if ‘we’ don’t get a new DoD department to hide numbers under.”

 

[A Life Aloft]

Every time .... every.... single..... time....

That is so damn funny. I watched it three times. lmao

 

[Pilot Fighter]

I feel like we achieved so much in terms of technological progress up until the late 70's. All these great planes(military and civilian) came from the era before 1980 when I was born. The F117, the F111, the Tomcat, the C5, U2, the space shuttle, the Cessna 172, the list goes on. Ive seen the C5 only once in PSP when Bush 2 was in office visiting socal back in the day.

I'm wondering what stopped all this progress.

Progress didn't stop, the metrics for measuring progress have changed.

Progress was once measured by improvements in speed, range, payload, agility, and service ceiling.

Those metrics are still important but many other factors are now in the mix. Incremental improvements in airframe, engines, and weapon systems don't make headlines.

 

[///AMG]

^ what he said. The biggest thing I think is the classification level most of the last 20 years of technology lives at.....I mean the real game changing stuff. Most Americans will never know just how awesome our stuff is today. And that's important, so that our wartime capabilities are also a surprise to our potential enemies on the battlefield should another major war come along. Sleep well, it didn't come cheaply, but we still enjoy a significant advantage over anything/anyone else in the world.

 

[A Life Aloft]

^ what he said. The biggest thing I think is the classification level most of the last 20 years of technology lives at.....I mean the real game changing stuff. Most Americans will never know just how awesome our stuff is today. And that's important, so that our wartime capabilities are also a surprise to our potential enemies on the battlefield should another major war come along. Sleep well, it didn't come cheaply, but we still enjoy a significant advantage over anything/anyone else in the world.

Even though the bureaucracy and waste exists as well as the need for streamlining and re-organization, better communication and I am sure much more that I am not that aware of, our Military is constantly changing, developing new technology and evolving. I think I have some really good sources that I have accumulated over time which I look at on the net to read about some of it. It is impossible to keep up with all the branches and then all the equipment albeit ships, vehicles, aircraft, weapons, etc. Even in one branch, it would be difficult to keep up because so much is going on, on every level and there are so many different specialized divisions in each branch. I am constantly learning something new and trying to understand/comprehend most of what I am even reading, watching and researching. And what I am seeing is only what the general public is allowed to see. The tip of the iceberg so to speak. I find a lot of it really amazing and I am always thinking, damn, I didn't know that or wow, that is really cool, or hell when did that happen. I can only dream/imagine all the other developments and technology that actually exists and is being explored by our Military.

 

[BravoHotel]

I have been associated with the C-5 for about 3 years now. For those who don’t know I’m a Flight Engineer with a reserve squadron. I have had the privilege to have flown around the world. FRED has taken me to a lot of places.

I swear there is a persona to each individual FRED in the fleet. I have flown six day missions to the desert and back with out a single hiccup out of the airplane. On that particular trip our opponent was TACC. I’ve also flown a mission that was fragged for five days that turned into twenty five days. We broke, hard in Germany for two weeks. Most people would think, Germany great! What they don’t understand is the rolling alert status we were in. We were not released until there was a definite period of time where the aircraft had no chance of being fixed. In this case we waited for a maintenance recovery team and a parts to be flown in from the states. Then we actually had some freedom to move about.

One word FRED does not like is “early.” Our usual launch sequence of events is 3 hours and 45 minutes. Sometimes if we are just taking gas we try to get an “early go” so we aren’t just twiddling our thumbs. I have broken more times than I care to count on a “quick turn.” One time a quick turn ended up being a week in Alaska. It was in the middle of December. Not too much to do except visit the 49th state brewery and a few other legendary Anchorage watering holes.

On another trip through Anchorage we didn’t land at Elmo, instead we went to Ted Stevens. I will just say, that was the fastest I ever seen FRED get gassed up. I don’t remember the operation, but they were quick and efficient, sort of the opposite of what we get at Elmo.

There is always something to learn about the aircraft. One shout out goes to our flying crew chiefs. Those guys work their asses (which you can totally say here on JC.) off to keep FRED appeased.

All my experience is with the M version of the aircraft. The C-5 is a hell of an airplane. Our ability to carry the shear amount of stuff is impressive. When things work as advertised.

 

[Screaming_Emu]

I have been associated with the C-5 for about 3 years now. For those who don’t know I’m a Flight Engineer with a reserve squadron. I have had the privilege to have flown around the world. FRED has taken me to a lot of places.

I swear there is a persona to each individual FRED in the fleet. I have flown six day missions to the desert and back with out a single hiccup out of the airplane. On that particular trip our opponent was TACC. I’ve also flown a mission that was fragged for five days that turned into twenty five days. We broke, hard in Germany for two weeks. Most people would think, Germany great! What they don’t understand is the rolling alert status we were in. We were not released until there was a definite period of time where the aircraft had no chance of being fixed. In this case we waited for a maintenance recovery team and a parts to be flown in from the states. Then we actually had some freedom to move about.

One word FRED does not like is “early.” Our usual launch sequence of events is 3 hours and 45 minutes. Sometimes if we are just taking gas we try to get an “early go” so we aren’t just twiddling our thumbs. I have broken more times than I care to count on a “quick turn.” One time a quick turn ended up being a week in Alaska. It was in the middle of December. Not too much to do except visit the 49th state brewery and a few other legendary Anchorage watering holes.

On another trip through Anchorage we didn’t land at Elmo, instead we went to Ted Stevens. I will just say, that was the fastest I ever seen FRED get gassed up. I don’t remember the operation, but they were quick and efficient, sort of the opposite of what we get at Elmo.

There is always something to learn about the aircraft. One shout out goes to our flying crew chiefs. Those guys work their asses (which you can totally say here on JC.) off to keep FRED appeased.

All my experience is with the M version of the aircraft. The C-5 is a hell of an airplane. Our ability to carry the shear amount of stuff is impressive. When things work as advertised.

EDF (and other bases) are always pretty entertaining to operate out of as a civilian. More than a couple times we've been refused entry to the base. "You are civilians, the civilian airport is on the other side of town."

Between those experiences and growing up on military bases around the world, my theory is that when you have everyone changing jobs every three years or so, most people are still in the "trying to figure stuff out" phase of their jobs.

 

[BravoHotel]

EDF (and other bases) are always pretty entertaining to operate out of as a civilian. More than a couple times we've been refused entry to the base. "You are civilians, the civilian airport is on the other side of town."

Between those experiences and growing up on military bases around the world, my theory is that when you have everyone changing jobs every three years or so, most people are still in the "trying to figure stuff out" phase of their jobs.

I would agree with the 3 year thing. I knew a maintainer who loved being a maintainer. What did the Air Force do to him? They said you’re now going into contract oversight. That is one thing I like about the Reserves or Guard is if you want to stay one thing or move around you can with out too much trouble. (There are always exceptions). I plan on staying with FRED for the rest of my time in the Air Force.

 

[MikeD]

If you wanted reliability and good in-service rate, you called on this baby.

 

[BravoHotel]

If you wanted reliability and good in-service rate, you called on this baby.



View attachment 43912

Sadly no more. There are several senior guys in my squadron who either flew them or were an Eng on the 141. It wasn’t the fastest but they say her time to climb up to altitude was impressive.

 

[MikeD]

Sadly no more. There are several senior guys in my squadron who either flew them or were an Eng on the 141. It wasn’t the fastest but they say her time to climb up to altitude was impressive.

She was a good bird. Rode on her many times. And saw when her fleet were rapidly retired to the boneyard, and just as rapidly scrapped due to how much real estate they took up in storage.

FRED is a great bird too. She just requires some TLC.

 

[RDoug]

If you wanted reliability and good in-service rate, you called on this baby.



View attachment 43912

One of my all-time favorite cargo haulers. Once took the wife and kids on standby to Honolulu and back on one. Heat didn't work, and we were dressed for the tropics, of course, but still a really need flight.

Flew as a civilian on a C-5A back in '72, riding in the upper deck passenger compartment. We were flying from Kadena to Dover by way of Anchorage. Broke down in Anchorage and spent something like 18 hours there with several other college-bound dependents.

Now, if I can some day hitch a ride on a C-130 and a (especially) a KC-135, my cargo fantasies will be complete.

 

[MikeD]

One of my all-time favorite cargo haulers. Once took the wife and kids on standby to Honolulu and back on one. Heat didn't work, and we were dressed for the tropics, of course, but still a really need flight.

Flew as a civilian on a C-5A back in '72, riding in the upper deck passenger compartment. We were flying from Kadena to Dover by way of Anchorage. Broke down in Anchorage and spent something like 18 hours there with several other college-bound dependents.

Now, if I can some day hitch a ride on a C-130 and a (especially) a KC-135, my cargo fantasies will be complete.

The 141 was a fairly comfortable bird as a pax. Last one I rode was in late 2003, a reserve bird.

Were KC-97s still around in your AF time? I believe the air guard in PHX was operating them until late 1977 or 78.

 

[RDoug]

Were KC-97s still around in your AF time? I believe the air guard in PHX was operating them until late 1977 or 78.

I believe some reserve units still had them, but I never worked one. When SAC grabbed dad out of Research & Development, he was first put into the KC-97 before being given the KC-135. The closest I've been to a KC-97 was touring the NASA Super Guppy based here at KELP. It still has the refueling panel in the cockpit. Two articles I did on that bird:

Interesting Aircraft — The Super Guppy

The Super Guppy Revisited

Sample shots from those two articles:

 

[milleR]

The A380 designers probably keep a copy of that first shot on their to desks as a motivational "well, it could have been worse" tool.