News

Reservist ready to land in Japan when earthquake changes plans

  • Published
  • By Sandra Pishner
  • 446th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
MCCHORD FIELD, Wash. --  Flying into Japan is a well-established routine for Delta pilot and Air Force Reservist Lt. Col. Steven Lee. That routine was shaken when an 8.9 magnitude earthquake struck the island of Japan March 11.

As they prepared for their descent into the Narita Airport near Tokyo, Colonel Lee, co-pilot on the Airbus 330, and his captain received the following transmission: "Delta 295, hold at the next point. You are not allowed to enter the airspace."

"I had never heard that before," said Colonel Lee, 446th Airlift Wing executive officer. "Then we heard, 'Narita is closed right now due to a runway inspection due to an earthquake.'"

Knowing Japan was no stranger to earthquakes, Colonel Lee thought to himself that it was not big deal and would be over in 10 minutes. It wasn't until they landed at Yokota and passengers started receive news via e-mail and Twitter that the gravity of the earthquake was known to him.

As the Airbus 330 remained aloft waiting for clearance to land, it became apparent to the aircrew that an alternate landing spot would be necessary - fuel was starting to get low.

Told that all the nearby airports were closed, the Delta crew was left to their own devices. Colonel Lee calls Yokota Air Base and asks if they were really closed.

"They said, not if you declare an emergency," said the colonel. "So we declared an emergency and went into Yokota."

Colonel Lee aircraft was one of 11 aircraft allowed to land at Yokota, at which point the ramp was full.

"It was heartwarming to see all the Yokota Airmen working their butts off," said Colonel Lee. "They got all these buses for us, brought us to the community center, (all the passengers) had cots, they all got box lunches. Some of the planes that had landed elsewhere ended up having (passengers) stay on their aircraft for upwards of 30 hours."

While on the ground at Yokota, Colonel Lee made sure his passengers were taken care of, including a cat. "I had to call maintenance and figure out how to open the cargo door. So I learned how to open a cargo bin and take a really screaming cat out of there and bring it to the vet on base just for overnight."

By about noon the next day, all passengers, the cat, and the crew were on their way to an alternate final destination.

"It was an interesting experience," said the colonel. "We just hope that the Japanese people can overcome the disaster and get back to their normal lives."