C-5 armed and ready for battle Published Jan. 27, 2009 By Stacy Vaughn 445th Airlift Wing Public Affairs WRIGHT-PATTERSON AFB, Ohio -- A four-person team from the 653rd Combat Logistics Support Squadron, Robins Air Force Base, Ga., began installing armor on five 445th Airlift Wing C-5 aircraft Jan. 26. The team, composed of two crew chiefs and two electronic environmental specialists, will spend the next three-five weeks installing the armor with each aircraft taking an average of 3-5 days for the installation process. The 445 AW received five kits, each containing the armor pieces that will be fit together and installed in the flight deck area. One C-5 has already gone through the process. Four more kits will be sent in the near future to meet the goal of having all 10 aircraft outfitted with armor. "The process is like putting together a big jigsaw puzzle. Several pieces are fit together to form the armor," said Master Sgt. Timothy Davis, Sortie Support Flight Chief, 445th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. Sergeant Fujimoto added that the pieces are connected with what they call "Superman Velcro." "This is the strongest Velcro I have ever had to deal with. It's time consuming but the team we have working the installation is very proficient with this process," he said. Sergeant Fujimoto said the weight of the armor is approximately 2,100 pounds. Of that, 1,500 pounds has to be carried into the flight deck, 150 pounds to the left and right of the jump doors and the rest to the liquid oxygen compartment. He added that the team will get quite a work out during the installation process. Once installed, the armor will act like a bullet-proof vest to the aircraft and help protect the crew and equipment on the flight deck. "Having the armor installed on our aircraft is a big safety factor," said Sergeant Davis. "It protects the flight crew from small arms fire from the ground." The armor will also reduce the threat of damage to vital, internal parts of the aircraft. Lt. Col. Mike Baker, 445th Operations Support Squadron, Chief of Current Operations, said one of the main impacts the armor will have is that it will allow the aircraft to fly into critical areas of the Area of Responsibility (AOR) that were once restricted unless certain waivers were granted for aircraft that did not have armor installed. "When aircrew members board the aircraft and see the armor, they immediately sense the enhanced aircraft capability. They know that even if their original mission did not require armor, the aircraft modification will allow them to accept certain itinerary changes requested during mission execution," said Lt. Col. Baker. Sergeant Davis said once the armor is installed, it's meant to remain installed unless the aircraft is sent away for maintenance. When this happens, the armor is removed and stored during the duration. If normal maintenance is needed on the aircraft, any necessary pieces of the armor will be removed then re-installed upon completion of the maintenance requirement.