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Spirit of the Constitution completes first mission

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Kevin Wallace
  • 436th AW Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  The words 'Dover tower, this is Reach 510, heavy C-17 one to five miles to fly on the instrument approach to runway three two,' resonated in air-traffic controller Staff Sgt. Andrew Sokolovich's headset.

"Check, wheels down - you are clear to land," replied Sergeant Sokolovich.

With that, the Spirit of the Constitution, Dover Air Force Base's first C-17 Globemaster III, touched down Monday on the return from its first real-world operation to Kabul, Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

For the crew, the mission was like any other.

"Our crew brought (more than 15) pallets of cargo into Kabul using the engine running offload method," said Staff Sgt. Seth Malcolm, 3rd Airlift Squadron loadmaster. "They landed the jet, put the engines into reverse and kept them running as a ground crew there pulled in a K-Loader and offloaded the pallets. As soon as the ground crew cleared, our flight crew got back into the air."

After the completion of the mission, the crew returned to Dover and called it a success; they even stopped to pick up space-available passengers along the way.

Indeed, for the Eagle Wing crew, the mission was much like many others flown. 

On the other hand, for Dover Air Force Base, the mission was nothing close to being 'business as usual.'

For more than a year, Team Dover has been ramping up operations, paving the way for a squadron of new C-17s.

On June 4, the C-17 arrival became a reality when the Spirit of the Constitution debuted at Dover with a fanfare and welcome ceremony. Less than a month later, the aircraft was touching down into a war zone, moving supplies to deployed servicemembers there.

"Getting the plane is exciting, but the real excitement will be taking it downrange and putting it to work," said Maj. Justin Riddle, 3rd AS pilot, in an interview only a week prior to the plane arriving at Dover. "Every combat sortie that we fly eliminates the need for dangerous convoy missions in Iraq."

For Major Riddle, the ambition of flying this C-17 downrange and helping to eliminate the perilous convoys became a reality last week when he and eight others completed this very task.

"I think the addition of the C-17 to the fleet is going to save lives," said Sergeant Malcolm, agreeing with the major that the aircraft will help to eliminate some dangerous convey movements. "For the troops on the ground, if the oversized cargo isn't brought in by air on a C-17, then it has to be driven in."

There are only two airframes in the Air Force inventory that can land on semi-prepared runways, the C-130 and C-17, he explained. However, of the two, only the C-17 can carry oversized cargo, cargo larger than normal pallets.

The plane has enough cargo space to carry 18 full-sized pallets, explained the sergeant. It's even possible to load three Blackhawk helicopters onto one C-17 and deliver them right into whatever zone the Air Force or any sister service may need them in.

Surely, in the months and years to come, Team Dover will complete many more missions like the one completed here. However, this crew of the Spirit of the Constitution, consisting of crewmembers Maj. Justin Riddle, Maj. Brian Oconnell, Capt. Douglas Palagi, Capt. Jeffrey Jones, Staff Sgt. Bryan Bennett, Staff Sgt. Jeff Weatherly, Staff Sgt. Christopher Copans, Senior Airman Robert Paradis and Senior Airman Todd Barney will now be permanently etched in the history of Dover AFB as being the crew that flew Dover's first C-17 on a real-world mission.

Dover's second C-17 flew in support of Air Combat Command and the Navy during a joint exercise recently. Read about it on this Web site.

The Eagle Wing's third C-17 is due to arrive July 13.