News

Reserve crews aid Soldiers with jumps

  • Published
  • By Sandra Pishner
  • 446th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
MCCHORD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. --  With 67 passes across a drop zone and 1,360 jumpers leaving one aircraft alone, six 446th Airlift Wing Reservists left Fort Benning, Ga., Feb. 26 proficient in the dropping of personnel. 

Providing a platform for Soldiers to graduate from the Basic Airborne Course in Fort Benning, was the mission of McChord Reservists Feb. 22-26. 

Soldiers in specialties as diverse as clerks, cooks and infantry receive their initial jump training at the BAC in hopes of earning their wings to become paratroopers. Each soldier is required to complete five jumps, either from a C-130 or a C-17, in order to graduate. 

"Some of the Army had never ever flown before, yet their first flight would have them jumping out of a perfectly good aircraft," said Senior Master Sgt. John Vujovich, a loadmaster assigned to the 446th Operations Support Flight. "The Army needs all its personnel assets to be able to jump into any location in the world and set up shop." 

The Reserve crews' took advantage of supporting the BAC students to satisfy some of their own training requirements. 

"We had six loadmasters and two pilots who needed to become current in their training. Four of the six loadmasters were non-current for personnel jumps because of last year's poor weather and limits on aircraft and mission availability for the last quarter of 2008," said Sergeant Vujovich. 

Both the Reservists' training needs and the Army's were all accomplished in three days of work. 

"The C-130s were broke the majority of the time and the Army was quick to capitalize on our working airframe," said Sergeant Vujovich. "All students were able to get their required five jumps in and graduate on time." 

According to Sergeant Vujovich, a normal schedule would involve three lifts a day for about six hours worth of work per day. While on this mission, the Reservists completed seven lifts a day and worked 12 hours per day. 

The Reservists on the mission to Fort Benning were:
Capt. Andrew Burke, 97th Airlift Squadron, aircraft commander; Maj. Kevin Peterson, 728th AS, co pilot; Sergeant Vujovich, 446th OSF, primary instructor loadmaster; Master Sgt. Bob Bertsch, 728th AS, instructor loadmaster; Senior Master Sgt. Lance Gustafson, 446th Operations Group, loadmaster; Master Sgt. Bob Withrow, 313th AS, loadmaster; Tech. Sgt. Craig Johnson, 313th AS, loadmaster; Senior Airman Jessie Doyle, 62nd Operations Support Squadron, loadmaster, joint inspector; Tech. Sgt. David Gallegos, 446th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, crew chief.