Loadmaster leaves big shoes to fill at Operation Deep Freeze

Published Oct. 14, 2014
By Master Sgt. Todd Wivell
62nd Airlift Wing Public Affairs

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand -- "He has been the hub of all things for Operation Deep Freeze at McChord for nearly 15 years. If anyone asked him a question about something ODF related, he usually knew the answer and if he didn't, he knew who to ask," said Lt. Col. Tim Davis, 304th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron director of operations and 728th Airlift Squadron chief pilot. "Having that instantaneous feedback is priceless. He's leaving big shoes to fill."

The person that Davis is referring to is Air Force Reservist Chief Master Sgt. Jim Masura, 304th EAS operations superintendent and 97th AS chief loadmaster and resource manager. After a record 87 missions in support of ODF, the rotation of Sept. 23 - Oct. 12 that he just completed could very well be his last one.

Masura's first mission was in 1999 as a line loadmaster on the C-141.

"I have been part of every ODF since 1999 other than the one year when I was in C-17 training," said Masura. "I would have to estimate that I have been to Christchurch, New Zealand in support of the mission more than 35 times."

"I've known Chief Masura since 1993," said Davis. "We have worked together planning and scheduling C-17 flights to McMurdo Station, Antarctica from Christchurch. We also trained and certified crews in the safe operations of ODF flights.

"He is probably the most knowledgeable person with regard to C-17 operations in Antarctica and he is a pleasure to work with and makes all of our jobs significantly easier there," said Davis.

That knowledge has been called on time and time again, from air dropping critical supplies to providing medical evacuations out of McMurdo Station to training on night vision goggles and using them in a nighttime mission there.

In January of 2008, Masura participated in the successful airdrop of parts to aid a fishing trawler that had suffered an engine failure.

"We happened to be very lucky when this event occurred because we happened to have a 'highly' experienced crew in town for the annual airdrop trainer," said Masura.

The pilots had a complex task of determining how to drop to a target that kept moving, while the loadmasters were tasked to get the 'care bundle' together and had to figure out how to get them to the ship safely and without damage."

"We packed each part in more than five layers of plastic to ensure they were not damaged if the cargo spent time in the salt water. We were also tasked to figure out how to make the bundle float in case it did end up in the water.

"We came up with a buoy idea, which ended up not being needed because we dropped it exactly where we were aiming on an iceberg."

The fishing trawler received the much needed supplies and was able to successfully make it out of the ice.

In November 2008, Masura was part of a successful airdrop of fuel to the Gamburtsev Mountain Province in Antarctica.

"This was a huge success for the McChord C-17 community," said Masura. "We provided the fuel for a project that was split into two camps; the LC-130s provided for the U.S. program close to the South Pole and we provided for the British program farther away.

"Without our ability to airdrop, it would have taken months to stock pile the fuel needed for the twin otters to operate. It took weeks of planning, but in the end we exceeded expectations," Masura explains.

Not only did Masura and the rest of the crew succeed on that mission, they did it so well that excess fuel delivered as part of the airdrop to the camp was used to provide support to a Chinese program the following year.

Another mission Masura was part of was in September 2011 when a McChord crew completed a mid-winter nighttime airdrop of medical supplies at the South Pole.

"It took years for Team McChord to prove to the National Science Foundation and U.S. Antarctic Program that we had the ability to drop what was needed to precise points on the continent and this was our chance," said Masura. "This was the first time we were allowed to drop on the 'ski-way' drop zone which is only hundreds of yards from McMurdo station.

"We dropped it right at the point of impact as promised, further validating the C-17 requirement of support to ODF," he said.

As if that was not enough, Masura also participated in a critical Antarctica nighttime medevac in April of 2013.

"The biggest success of this particular mission is that it was validation of years of establishing procedures and process for just that moment. We spent years getting the C-17 basic operations in Antarctica documented, then we added the NVG piece and that gave us the ability to support the station year round.

"We presented that capability to the NSF and they took the information and considered it. There were earlier medevac's when we had the same capability, but the NSF had chosen to go another route.

"We continued to train, prove and improve our concepts, then finally we got the call. I think we hit a grand slam on this and every medevac that we have done," said Masura.

While Masura participated in these unique events and left his mark within the ODF community, he has also had a lasting impression on the Christchurch community.

Through the efforts of Masura and those before him, more than $75,000 in New Zealand currency has been donated to local charities in the mission's staging area of Christchurch.

"This is not done for publicity, it is done to support the community which supports us when we are here," said Masura. "Each charity has a story behind it that somehow touches our group."

"I am very proud to have taken on this project which was started by collecting everybody's extra coins at the end of the rotation, to the program that it is now. It is a lot of work for me, but it is also very rewarding and I hope that it only expands," he said.

"He has cultivated a vast array of working relationships within every facet of the operation to include active duty, Guard, Reserve, civilian, New Zealand military personnel and the New Zealand communities," said Davis. "One of his best characteristics is his willingness to get the job done right no matter what it takes. He has high expectations for himself and those around him. You know that when he is working on a project, regardless of what it is, it will be done right the first time."

"This [ODF mission] is not a job that just anybody can do; there is no other operation in the world that deals with so many different groups with so little manpower and so much success, as that of the 304th EAS," said Masura. "This is because we have developed-a solid base to build on and have a vision for the future."

That future does not include Masura, as he has moves on in his Air Force Reserve career, but he has paved the way for those to follow.

News