News

Looking back in time: from deep space to Deep Freeze

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Rachael Garneau
  • 446th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
MCCHORD FIELD, Wash. --  In 1961, America was going through a lot of changes. President John F. Kennedy would take office, the United States broke off diplomatic relations in Cuba, and Alan Shepard became the first American to travel in space.

In the meantime, the 446th Airlift Wing, then the 446th Troop Carrier Wing, went through a big transformation as well. In October of 1961, the unit was based out of Ellington Air Force Base, Texas and they began working with NASA, based on Kennedy's "space race" to be the first country to step foot on the moon.

According to official Congressional transcripts from May of 1961, Kennedy said, "first, I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish."

From 1961 to 1967, the 446th helped NASA test their Mercury and, later, Gemini time capsules, by dropping the boilerplates from the unit's C-119J "Flying Boxcar's." Boilerplate spacecraft are most commonly used to test manned spacecraft.

The C-119J was different from other C-119 models in that it was modified to accommodate catching the capsule's parachute mid-air as it fell from orbit. In addition, the aircraft an adapted rear fuselage to drop the boilerplates from higher altitudes to test their parachute systems.

"We propose to accelerate the development of the appropriate lunar space craft,"Kennedy said. "...Explorations which are particularly important for one purpose which this nation will never overlook: the survival of the man who first makes this daring flight. But in a very real sense, it will not be one man going to the moon- if we make this judgment affirmatively, it will be an entire nation."

The wing may not be directly involved with NASA today , but the 446th AW is still pursuing the science mission on another front.The 446th AW, along with their active-duty counterparts from the 62nd Airlift Wing, teamed up with the National Science Foundation for Operation Deep Freeze. In 1997, the 446th AW became the primary airlift support for the NSF scientists, their equipment and supplies flying into Antarctica.

"Because of Ellington's proximity and the aircraft available, it was a very specific mission," said Tech. Sgt. Jenn De Lucia, the 446th AW historian. "I think they picked the 446th to accomplish it mostly because of their location and the resources available to accomplish that mission, similar to Operation Deep Freeze now. We may not be the closest unit to New Zealand and Antarctica, but we've been the main unit flying in support of ODF since the 80's."

According to De Lucia, proximity was important in 1961, when Ellington AFB started working with NASA. The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center had just been established in nearby Houston after NASA moved from Langley, Va.

In addition to the boilermaker testing with the C-119J's, the base became the home for all astronaut flight training. The Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo astronauts logged thousands of hours in T-38 Talons to maintain their flying skills, a program that still occurs at the now-named Ellington Field today.

In July of 1972, the 446th was inactivated at Ellington. Almost six months later it was redesignated as the 446th Military Airlift Wing at its new home of then McChord Air Force Base, Wash.

De Lucia says it's imperative for Airmen to take time to learn their unit's history.

"I think it's important because, as a Reservist, you're adding to the heritage," said De Lucia. "You are writing the next chapter in your unit's history every time you put on the uniform and come onto base. Your actions may not seem significant at the time, fixing an airplane or playing in exercises including, the operational readiness inspection, but it is the next chapter in this wing's history."