Training Mission Disputed Air Force Tipped Off That Tacoma Crew Flew To See Sonics

A crew of 10 Air Force reservists based in Washington state is under investigation for turning a cross-country training mission in a large cargo jet last week into a basketball adventure, attending games by the Seattle Sonics in North Carolina and Indiana.

While long-distance training flights are normal for Air Force personnel to maintain proficiency, the Washington airmen are suspected of arranging their trip - which the Air Force calculates cost taxpayers $42,840 - specifically to see the basketball games.

The official purpose of the mission was to practice air refuelings and cargo loading in a C-141, which the airmen did.

But after reaching Charlotte on Friday, ending the first leg of their weekend trip, the reservists went to see the Sonics play the Hornets. On Saturday, they flew to Grissom Air Force Base in Indiana, unloaded a government-owned van from the plane’s cargo bay, and drove 60 miles to watch the Sonics face off against the Pacers in Indianapolis. On Sunday, they jetted back to their base near Tacoma.

“What’s being investigated is if, in fact, they did this to go to the ballgames,” said Col. Don Hessenflow, spokesman for the Air Force Reserve.

Before taking off on training missions, crews are required to receive flight plan approval from an operations officer. Air Force spokesmen were not saying Wednesday who approved this particular flight, and there was some confusion about whether the Tacoma crew had initially listed Charlotte as their destination.

One Air Force official said Wednesday that the copy of the flight plan he had seen showed Charlotte as the destination. But another official said the original plan had not indicated Charlotte, adding, “The plan was modified en route.”

Also under investigation is use of the van. Taking it along was not improper. But such ground vehicles are supposed to be used simply for transporting crews from often remote airfields to lodging and restaurants.

“You can use a government vehicle to drive to a place to sleep or eat,” said Hessenflow. “But you can’t drive to a ballgame.”

The weekend journey might have gone unpublicized if not for a Charlotte airport worker, who was surprised to see the big military cargo plane pull up near the Supersonics’ plane and hear the airmen say they were there to go to the ballgame, according to WCNC-TV, the NBC affiliate in Charlotte that first reported the story.

Maj. Gen. Robert McIntosh, chief of the Air Force Reserves, learned of the flight from the television broadcast and ordered a swift investigation.

“This is on a fast track,” a senior Air Force official said Wednesday, “and we hope to have more information by next week.

The 10 airmen, members of the 446th Airlift Wing at McChord Air Force Base, have been grounded pending results of the investigation.

The C-141 normally takes a crew of six, but Air Force officials say additional members are sometimes added in training flights to take advantage of the flying time.

The crew on last weekend’s mission included a pilot and co-pilot, navigator, four flight engineers and three load masters. The Air Force declined to release their names.

“These are fairly experienced guys,” one official said, noting that the two pilots hold the rank of captain, the navigator is a major and there are four master sergeants among the other seven.

The C-141, with its powerful four jet engines and 68,000-pound cargo capacity, is central to the military’s ability to haul combat equipment and troops over long distances.

It can carry up to 200 troops. Rollers on the aircraft’s floor were designed for quick loading and unloading of cargo pallets. Two side doors and the rear loading ramp were configured to allow for parachute drops of soldiers and supplies. Four dozen of the planes are based at McChord.