Tight fit for GM-3 will save $360K per flight

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Don Branum
  • 50th Space Wing Public Affairs
SCHRIEVER AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. (AFPN) --  Members of the 4th Space Operations Squadron here successfully loaded their Ground Mobile-3 vehicle onto a C-17 Globemaster III Sept. 10, proving a concept that will save the Air Force more than $360,000 each time the GM-3 deploys. 

In addition, C-17s are easier to procure and have a greater reliability rate than the C-5 Galaxy, which is the aircraft the 4th SOPS previously used to transport the GM-3, said Capt. Kenneth Lancaster, 4th SOPS Operations Support Flight commander. 

GM-3 is a mobile satellite command-and-control vehicle that can provide Milstar support from anywhere in the world. 

The operation began as a concept approximately two years ago, said 1st Lt. Craig Cherek, 4th SOPS chief of mobile Milstar plans and tactics. 

"At the time, our published dimensions for a load plan didn't allow for transport via C-17," Lieutenant Cherek said. "I then heard the 137th Space Warning Squadron (an Air National Guard unit based in Greeley, Colo.) had loaded their Milstar van successfully last fall. 

"After investigating and coordinating with the folks at the 137th SWS, we discovered that, with some slight modifications, we could successfully fix our tractor-trailer in the aircraft," he said. 

Airmen from the 137th SWS and 14th Air Force at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., helped 4th SOPS Airmen with the proof of concept. A C-17 based at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., was returning to Peterson AFB, Colo., from Tennessee. The stopover allowed for the 4th SOPS Airmen to test the loading process of the GM-3.  

"We had to do a lot of adjustment," Captain Lancaster said. As the trailer backed into the aircraft's cargo bay, Airmen raised and lowered airbags between the wheel wells and the bottom of the trailer. 

"You would look at the height of the GM-3 and the clearance inside the aircraft and start second-guessing yourself," the lieutenant said. "Deep down, though, I think (we) knew it would go." 

The test was a success, although squeezing the GM-3 into the C-17 was a tight fit.

"We had one inch to spare on the top and just enough room to close the cargo door," Captain Lancaster said. 

Those few inches will make 4th SOPS much more flexible for contingency missions, said Lt. Col. John Shaw, 4th SOPS commander. 

"The C-17 is the 21st-century platform, and this brings us in line with today's expeditionary capabilities," Colonel Shaw said. 

"When we deploy, it's to be a part of the war on terrorism," he said. "We are part of a suite of capabilities the Air Force brings to bear to fight and win that war."