Dyess' 317th AG serves as hub of airdrop innovation

Published Jan. 25, 2012
By Airman 1st Class Charles V. Rivezzo
7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs

DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Each year Dyess' C-130 aircrews drop millions of pounds of combat supplies to coalition ground forces throughout Afghanistan. In the last few years, the 317th Airlift Group has led the way in revolutionizing how airdrops are conducted Air Force-wide.

In 2009, Dyess became the hub for testing and training for low-cost, low-altitude airdrops.

"We took it upon ourselves to offer our facilities and local training lines to test this new capability, in turn, Dyess became the test-bed for LCLA," said Capt. Thomas Sanders, 317th Operations Support Squadron.

After a few months of testing and training, the 317th AG proved LCLA was possible and soon after popularized it in theater, becoming the first airlift group to use this new capability.

In theater, LCLA brought provision to many troops operating at remote forward operating bases by dropping small packages of food, water, ammunition, medical supplies and much more.

"Prior to LCLA, due to budget restrictions, airdrops were not made unless the delivery would exceed 500-pounds," said Tech. Sgt. Ryan Crumrine, 317th OSS. "Now, we can meet the needs of smaller units by dropping them supplies when they are needed, rather than waiting until their order meets the required weight amount."

An LCLA airdrop is accomplished by dropping bundles weighing 80 to 500 pounds with pre-packed expendable parachutes in groups of up to four bundles per pass.

In addition to providing supplies to troops on the ground more efficiently, this airdrop method has saved the Air Force millions of dollars. The drops are termed "low-cost" to reflect the relative cost of the expendable parachutes compared to their previous more durable, but pricier nylon counterparts.

"The Air Force was losing money every time we airdropped supplies," Sanders said. "A lot of times the troops on the ground couldn't get the expensive parachutes back to us. With LCLA, we don't worry as much about retrieving the parachutes due to their extremely low cost."

Furthermore, the impact LCLA has on the airdrop community goes far beyond what can be measured in dollar signs.

"The fact that we can drop an LCLA bundle and still continue the rest of our day means we don't have to generate a second airplane to make those troop runs," Sanders said. "Therefore, we're saving aircraft, fuel, time and most importantly you're saving lives. We're now able to keep troops off the road that might normally convoy because we didn't have an airplane that could get them their supplies that day."

"The impact that LCLA gives us is close to immeasurable," he added. "The innovation that it has enabled the Air Force to have is absolutely revolutionary."

Additionally, the low-altitude delivery proves itself more accurate than traditional, higher-altitude airdrop methods and cuts down on stray bundles that can land away from the drop zone.

"Warfighters often operate in austere areas, and the drop zone the cargo needs to land in may be very small," Sanders said. "Being able to drop these bundles from low altitudes significantly increases the accuracy of our drops."

While the vast majority of airdrops are still conducted via Container Delivery System, LCLA has contributed to an exponential growth in airdrop capability.

Since 2008, airdrop numbers continue to soar Air Force-wide, increasing from 16.6 million pounds of cargo dropped in 2008 to an estimated 76.6 million pounds in 2011.

"The growth we have seen in airdrop capability since 2008 is remarkable," commented Sanders. "I believe the airdrop community has truly lived up to our motto of 'providing unrivaled sustainment support to the warfighter...anything, anywhere, anytime.'"