Scotia 109th Airlift Wing wants fleet upgrade

SCOTIA, N.Y. (NEWS10) — For nearly half a century, LC 130 military cargo planes have hit the skies. Naturally, time takes its course on aircraft, so the 109th Airlift Wing at the Stratton Air National Guard Base is now pushing for upgrades to their fleet.

Kevin Byrns, the Dedicated Crew Chief for one of the planes, inspected a flying machine as his team always does. “I've looked at some of the repairs over the years. I can definitely say that this thing has shown its share of age" Byrns said.

These H-model LC 130s are one of the only ski-equipped heavy-lift aircraft capable of flying to Arctic regions north and south. That’s where the planes drop off supplies for national security interests and research. The harsh temperature changes and landings on icy surfaces have exacerbated the wear on the nick-named “Ski Bird” fleet.

“The Air Force is going away from the H model C130s and they're converting to J model C-130s,” said Maintenance Squadron Commander Captain Pete Gioia. “So parts are going to become few, and the training and the experts that know how to work on these planes will become fewer" Gioia added.

Byrns and Gioia’s calls for new planes have gotten the attention of Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand who are pushing to fund these upgrades. For Byrns this isn’t just maintaining planes, it's taking pride in his work.

"It's a source of dedicated passion that's basically hard to justify, but just part of the job part of your pride in ownership," Byrns said. "And knowing that other people's lives fly on these things" he added.

Of course, upgrading the fleet will be a long process — “But like anything else in life, anything that takes time is usually worthwhile" Gioia added.

When the LC 130s go the way of the dodo bird — extinct and flightless — would Byrns like to see his planes in a museum? "Nah", said Byrns. "If you wanna drop it off in front of my house" he jokingly continued.

Congress has to approve funding for the new planes which cost upwards of $150 Million a piece. The entire process for new planes to hit the tarmac can take 5 to 10 years. For perspective, the entire Department of Defence budget is $842 Billion Dollars for this fiscal year.