The White Falcon - 05.03.1965, Page 3

Friday, March 5, 1965
WHITE FALCON
3
PERSONAL EQUIPMENT MEN —
Story and Photos by A1C WJt. Keener
VERY IMPORTANT INSPEC-
TION — The parachute is one of
the best friends a pilot can have
in his aircraft, and it must be
in perfect condition every time
he goes into the blue. All 57th FIS
’chutes are inspected by Personal
Equipment men, in this case A1C
Wellington Hein, each 120 days.
Sergeant Mathis said the gov-
ernment must pav $5,098 for the
“empty kit”, which includes only
the plastic case, the seat, and the
oxygen regulator and associated
apparatus.
Packs, All-Important
The men are the same all over,
Known also as the “rigid pack”,
this kit contains basic survival
gear for sea or land emergencies,
and has communications equip-
ment and oxygen devices which are
not included in the ML-4 inven-
tory.
All the components of the sur-
vival kits are given a thorough
check each 90 days by Airmen
Garrick and Hein, under the
watchful eyes of Sergeant Mathis,
an experienced personal equipment
NCO who has been in the field
since 1954, and in the military
since October, 1945. The oxygen
regulator in the kit which would
give the pilot a vital air supply
if he should eject from his air-
craft at high altitudes, is checked
more often, every seven and 28
days.
Rubber life rafts and “mae
west” life preservers are blown
up during the rigid inspections
and left inflated for a number of
hours to check for leaks.
Safety Inspections
The anti-exposure suit (usually
bright orange or gray) which the
pilot wears over thermal under-
wear is put into a tank of water
periodically to see that no leaks
in the custom-made, water tight
gear are present. Parachutes are
inspected visually about once a
month and are opened, inspected,
and repacked each 120 days.
Quite A Kit
It takes only about four hours
for one of the PES men to in-
spect and repack one of the Global
Survival Kits, quite a feat be-
cause of the number of items.
Included in the kit is enough
food for three days, a sleeping
bag designed to keep warmth in
CHECKING FOR LEAKS—Should
a pilot request a detailed inspec-
tion of his exposure suit, or if
Airman Garrick suspects that
something might be wrong, Ser-
geant Mathis puts the suit into a
specially designed water tank for
a thorough check. All the suits
are “tailor made” for the pilots
and must fit snugly and be free
from leakage for proper protection.
Taking a picnic in the park is ordinarily a routine thing, with the usual last minute
panic, the forgotten mustard or potato salad, ants, and assorted cuts and bruises among
the children of the family.
These things are accepted just about everywhere, and most people try to avoid making
small problems into major ones by fixing check lists in advance, packing ant spray
or powder, and inserting a first aid kit somewhere in the lunch basket or automobile.
With enough room in the family car, almost anything necessary can be taken along,
amidst a number of known “white’*’'
elephants” that dad says may be
used sometime somewhere.
Consider, however, the plight
of a 57th Fighter Interceptor Sq.
pilot when he takes his bird above
the clouds on a routine training
mission, or even an intercept of
an “unknown” aircraft. He cer-
tainly is not on a picnic, but still
there are certain things that must
be accepted and he must be ready
for any emergency.
Expect The Unexpected
Nobody expects a pilot to be
forced down into the cold waters
of the North Atlantic or the
rugged terrain of interior Ice-
land. And moreover, nobody ever
wants it to happen. But should
the time come that one finds
himself in such an emergency he
will have at his disposal one of
the most complete and useful sur-
vival kits ever designed, packed
with enough supplies and equip-
ment to last him a minimum of
three days in icy waters or barren
countrysides.
Keeping these survival kits
packed and ready according to
Air Force standards are thi-ee men
assigned to the Personal Equip-
ment Shop of the 57th FIS. Head-
ing the section is SSgt. Brown
Mathis, who has A1C Dennis
Garrick and A1C Wellington Hein
as his assistants.
Keeping Well-Dressed
It is their job to see that all
the personal equipment of today’s
“well-dressed” pilots is in the
finest condition possible and that
his emergency equipment will
meet any test.
Sergeant Mathis says the F-102
pilots carry with them one of the
most modern and compact emer-
gency packs in the Air Force, the
Global Survival Kit. This is the
one carried by pilots in newer
and faster jet interceptors, and
is a little more complete than the
ML-4 kit which is carried aboard
T-33’s.
Survival Gear
arctic temperatures, fishing gear,
a snow saw, hunting knife, a sur-
vival stove with heat tablets, a
compass, a water purification kit,
additional clothing, and numerous
other items.
Instant Food
Some of the food is canned,
the rest is dehydrated. The de-
hydrated food pack has mostly
food bars, tablets and cubes to
make soups and broths, while the
canned goods are primarily perish-
able items, and ingredients to
make tea and coffee.
WATER SURVIVAL—If a plane should ditch into the water somewhere,
the pilot would have at his disposal an “underarm life preserver” and
a life raft. SSgt. Brown Mathis (right) and Airman Hein check over
these survival items every 90 days, including blowing up the rafts and
preservers to check leaks and flaws.
OXYGEN PRESSURE—Although each of the “Deuces” here carries its
own supply of oxygen for flying at high altitudes, each of the survival
kits carries a small bottle of oxygen under pressure in case the pilot
must eject at high altitudes, or the aircraft’s system malfunctions. The
oxygen tank, good for about 12-14 minutes, is thoroughly inspected
each seven and 28 days. Special attention is given to the tanks regulator.
ASSEMBLED KIT—A1C Dennis Garrick checks over fully assembled
survival kits such as this one periodically to see that all the strings
and straps are in their proper positions. The kit actually becomes the
pilot’s cockpit seat after it is packed, and can be easily opened in water
or on land.
And when the search aircraft
comes within direct sight, and no
obstacles are between the downed
pilot and the search plane, he can
communicate vocally with the res-
cue party by means of a small
radio packed in his survival gear.
Survival Packs Vary
The Global Survival Kit is not
universal among F-102 aircraft
scattered throughout the world.
Kits are packed according to cli-
mate and terrain, according to
Sergeant Mathis, and the tropical
islands in the South Pacific re-
quire quite different gear than the
chilly lands of the North Atlantic.
Two things remain basically the
same, however, the price of the
empty kit and the men who must
pack them.
ANTI-EXPOSURE SUITS —
These water-tight exposure suits
are worn by 57th FIS pilots in flight
and protect them against the frig-
id Arctic waters of the North At-
lantic should they be forced down
into the sea. Airman Garrick gives
them a visual inspection occasion-
ally as they hang in the pilots’
locker room at 57th Ops.
To aid in his rescue the pilot
has in his survival kit a beacon
which emits a “beeping” sound
similar to the one relayed from
the Soviet satellite Sputnik in
1957. This sound acts as a guide
for search and rescue aircraft.
Should the signal be picked up
at night when the pilot is not vis-
ible to low flying aircraft, his
kit also contains a powerful, pock-
et-sized light which can send an
electronic flash many miles into
the sky.
Vocal SOS
too, dedicated to the fact that a
pilot may one day be down some-
where relying on his survival kit
to keep him healthy and warm
until help arrives. His kit must
be in order, and Personal Equip-
ment Shop men must keep it that
way.
They Keep Survival Gear In Top Condition
But Hope IMo Pilot Ever Needs To Use It