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Herks don't need no runways

  • Published
  • By Mr. Bruce Stewart
  • 317th Airlift Group historian
DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  At 6:41 PM Sept. 24, a C-130 made history by taking off from Runway 16L at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas. But Dyess doesn't have a parallel runway accessible from the ramp, so how did a Herc take off from "runway 16L?" 

In March, Air Combat Command made the decision to resurface Dyess' main runway and send the B-1s to Ellsworth AFB during the runway closure. The 823rd Red Horse Squadron (REDHORSE) are working 24/7 to repair 7,000 feet of the main runway in 45 days before deploying to Southwest Asia. The men and women of the 317th Airlift Group felt that the unique abilities of the C-130 might open other options besides relocating, especially since the group is scheduled to swap out squadrons in the middle of the main runway repair project. 

"The final reasoning ... included the fact that moving to another location would prevent us from completing flying and/or ground training for out personnel deploying in support of AEF 9/10 and AEF 1/2," said Lt. Col. Edward Hennigan. "In other words, if we had to move, we would not be able to complete all of the flying and ground training. We could complete all of one and some of the other, or just some of both, but we could not fully train the personnel required." 

Deciding to turn Taxiway Alpha into a functional runway was the only solution that would allow the 317th AG to complete its mission, and Team Dyess began to work on that problem. 

One factor that weighed heavily on the minds of the planning staff was the impact of another TDY for Airmen who rotate in and out of the continental U.S. on a four-month rotation. 

"The family benefit to the 317th AG is priceless," Colonel Hennigan said. "Our people are weary. A CONUS 'deployment' while back home for reconstitution would have been, in my opinion, devastating ... and would have had long term impact." The ability to provide as much family time for the men and women of the 317th AG as possible was a wonderful benefit of the taxiway-to-runway conversion project, he said. 

The plan was to use the runway from afternoon to the early hours of the morning to separate flight operations from the fuel hydrant repair project on the south end of the ramp. This meant the runway needed lights. The REDHORSE provided an Emergency Airfield Lighting System.
 
At 5 p.m. on the afternoon of the historic flight, the reconfigured flightline and new runway were inspected and declared certified and open. 

For those on the ground, the takeoff was a vindication of their hard work and their ability to solve multiple problems to create the best alternative for the 317 AG and the Air Force; for the crew of HAZARD 51, their work had just started as they flew instrument approaches, assessed the visibility issues from the EALS system and the maintenance "ball park" lights on their night vision goggles. 

"The EALS are superb," crew members agreed. "We could easily distinguish the runway threshold and edge lights greater than five nautical miles from the airfield, and the strobes enhanced the picture. We determined the airfield ball park lights had a negligible effect on NVG operations to the runway." 

Overall, it was a glowing vindication of Team Dyess' plans for the runway. 

Not only did using 16L/34R provide the training window needed by 317 AG crews but it saved taxpayer money as well. Had any of the other options been selected for the 317th AG, the cost to the U.S. taxpayer would have been significant. 

"This runway project is (also) a great example of ORM on a large scale," Colonel Hennigan said. "We identified the risks, eliminated the ones we could, developed control measurers for the risks we couldn't eliminate, and executed the plan because the benefits outweighed the risks." 

Indeed, this operation was a classic example of inspiration, coordination, concentration, evaluation, and implementation--just the kind of work the Air Force is famous for. 

"The C-130 is the most versatile aircraft in the AF inventory, and it allows the 317 AG to project our nation's desires to the far corners of the world, and at home station," Lt. Col. Bret Crenwelge said. "The project epitomizes the motto of the 317 AG, "I Gain by Hazard."