C 141 Starlifter

[SWID]

Any of you guys that learned to love one of the best airplanes ever built and had not heard of this site get yourself a box of hankies and click it.

http://www.c141heaven.com/

 

[SWID]

Any of you guys that learned to love one of the best airplanes ever built and had not heard of this site get yourself a box of hankies and click it.

http://www.c141heaven.com/

 

[Thunderhawk88]

Only flight I had on a Starlifter was to be med-evac'd back to the states.

 

[m1gunner]

It is really sad to see planes you got to know up close and personal sitting in the boneyard awaiting the crusher.

Several years ago I saw at least 20 aircraft I had personally worked on, recognized the tail numbers. They were at that boneyard in the desert all lined up and waiting for disassembly.

Not Starlifters, but I know how those guys must feel.

 

[10-12]

Originally posted by Thunderhawk88:
Only flight I had on a Starlifter was to be med-evac'd back to the states.

What date were you med-evaced out? I have over 2,000 on the 141 and flew many a Medi-Evac out of Nam.

Bill

SWID,

Thanks so much for the link. First I had heard of it.

Bill

 

[2000Z-71]

Two memories of the 141. First one was getting to make a jump out of one, fun. Second one was coming back from Desert Storm. Couldn't pressurize and made the entire trip back to the states at something like 5,000' at 180 knots, not fun.

 

[S/W - Lifer]

I've got around 25 jumps from 141s, known in those days as the Cadillac of the skies. What an aircraft.

 

[SmithEC]

Originally posted by 2000Z-71:
... made the entire trip back to the states at something like 5,000' at 180 knots ...

You thought you'd never make it back. We thought we'd never make it there. About six times over two days, the -141 we were on would get about half-way down the runway in Dover and they'd throw the brakes on, advise us of a problem, and return to the terminal. It seemed to be SOP that they'd give us a box lunch every time we got on the plane. What else did you have to do but eat? We all got to feeling like pigs pretty quick. If an aircraft has any problem at all, it's not likely that it will leave Dover before it's fixed.


.

 

[cmort666]

I liked jumping the C-141 at Airborne School, because when you stuck your foot out the door, it practically sucked you out of the plane, unlike the C-130s which you had to jump out of. The C-130 seemed to just stand still over the DZ. Jumping a C-130 was like committing suicide by jumping out of a window.

My last jump at Airborne School was supposed to be a C-141. On the way to the DZ, we noticed smoke in the cabin. The jumpmaster was called forward to the cockpit, walking across our reserves to get there. When they opened the cockpit door, smoke came wafting out. When they opened the avionics bay(?) door, smoke poured out. The jumpmaster came back and told us we were returning to the field without jumping. I looked out the window and saw that we were low over a pine forest. Jumping wasn't going to be an option if we didn't get back. We all just shrugged and went back to sleep.

They put us on a C-130 and we made our last jump. We kept a bunch of people waiting at the graduation ceremony, including a Marine Corps general.

 

[mroyal98]

Brings back lots of memories. I supported the automatic flight control systems (autopilot) while in the AF and afterwords, as a contractor performed a major upgrade installing the Inertial Navigation System (around 1977/78)

 

[Lee in Quartzsite]

A moving tribute to the famous C-141, Hanoi Taxi:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BM09bxf3Ng

 

[armybass]

I was deployed in and out of Bosnia on a C141 in 1999-2000. It was an "adventure" to be sure. Little black box kept dying as we were taxing out and had to deplane several times. We were delayed at least 12 hours. And that was the "smooth" part of the trip. I will never forget my time on that classic. No frills workhorse.

 

[bobf]

Makes me feel old, I worked on them at Travis from 1967-70.

Bob

 

[dovekiller]

With nothing better to do one day I hopped one going to England. 140 seats on that thing and only three passengers, me and two other retirees.

Shot some skeet at Lakenheath AFB and then hopped another one back to McChord. What a life.

 

[Babalooie]

Originally posted by mroyal98:
Brings back lots of memories. I supported the automatic flight control systems (autopilot) while in the AF and afterwords, as a contractor performed a major upgrade installing the Inertial Navigation System (around 1977/78)

I did autopilots and compass systems on many different planes, including the C-141. Spent almost 12 years with Uncle Sugar.

I spent about 6 years at Pope AFB. We had a continuing commitment in England and Germany, with two month TDY's. When things were going well, we rode to England and Germany in C-141's. Otherwise, it was 24 hours in a C-130

.

 

[yashua-p]

The story that I heard was that they were used like 123's and 130's on the same runways and LZ's. Abuse of a good asset.

yashua

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

I jumped from one at Fort Bragg in 1969. The technique for exiting was as the others have said, quite different from the C-130.

 

[Kuglespritz]

Lots of history w/ those, but I preferred to JUMP out of the C130's.

 

[RGAmos]

When I was in the university, I was an engineering co-op student with Lockheed in Marietta. My first quarter at work, the C-141 (Starlifter) made its first flight. My last quarter, the C-5 (Galaxy) made its first flight. I remember the sign above the final assembly exit door: "A mistake covered up may cost the lives of a brave crew".