Military Officer - July 2007 - (Page 84)

encore Bombs Away Nerves are put to the test and creativity proves useful when an ordinary assignment becomes anything but routine. These airmen learn a lesson about thinking outside the box. I n the 1950s, my SAC C-124 crew was carrying a nuclear bomb to our home station, Barksdale AFB, La. It was only one bomb, but it was one of the biggies. It was mounted on a custom-built, fourwheeled trailer and positioned on the elevator platform halfway back in the aircraft. After we parked the aircraft, everyone in the crew deplaned except for the loadmaster and me. The loadmaster had to lower the bomb to the parking ramp with electric cables attached to the elevator, and I had to stay with the weapon until another ofﬁcer signed a receipt relieving me of my responsibility. The loadmaster activated the controls, and the elevator platform (with the bomb trailer ﬁrmly attached) started down through the belly of the aircraft. It was about halfway through the fuselage when I heard a loud bang, and something whistled past my ear. The front left elevator cable had snapped, and one end had just missed my head as it whipped by! The elevator platform was wedged in the fuselage opening at an angle — but luckily, the bomb and the trailer were still ﬁrmly attached. Although the bomb did not have any nuclear material inside — thank goodness — it was packed with high explosives used in the detonation process. If one of the other cables snapped and the bomb fell on the concrete ramp — which was only about 10 feet below the wedged elevator platform — there was a great chance the fall could set off the explosives, even without the bomb fuse activated. 84 MILITARY OFFICER J U LY 2 0 0 7 Outside, people were running in every direction to get away, and tugs were starting to pull away aircraft that were parked next to our plane, attempting to save them from imminent damage. Someone suggested gathering a bunch of mattresses from the airmen’s dormitory and stacking them under the belly of the aircraft, to cushion the bomb if it fell. That idea was quickly discounted as being too time-consuming. A clever maintenance supervisor suggested driving one of the blue ﬂight line maintenance vans underneath the aircraft — if the bomb fell, it would crush the van but perhaps remain intact. No one could come up with a better idea, so a few minutes later somebody drove a maintenance van underneath the aircraft. Finally, the maintenance crew unwound the broken cable off its winch and installed a new cable, then lowered an airmen down through the elevator opening, holding him by his legs, so he could attach the hook on the end of the new cable to the elevator platform. There was a collective sigh of relief from everyone — especially me — when that huge thing was safe on the ground. I got my receipt signed and went straight home. MO — Art Roberts is a retired Air Force major. He and his wife of 49 years now live in Vacaville, Calif. Tell Your Story ■ Share your service- related adventures (or mishaps) by e-mail to encore@moaa.org, or mail them to Encore Editor, 201 N. Washington St., Alexandria, VA 22314. All submissions will be considered for publication. ILLUSTRATION: ELWOOD SMITH

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Military Officer - July 2007

Military Officer - July 2007 Contents From the Editor From the President Your Views MOAA Directory Rapid Fire Washington Scene Financial Forum Ask the Doctor Chapter Activities Cover Story: In Focus After the Kim Dynasty Animal House Paying Tribute MOAA Member Services Pages of History Faces of MOAA Information Exchange Advertising Index MOAA Scholarship Donors MOAA Calendar Sounding Taps Encore

Military Officer - July 2007

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