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Show Hill AFB, Utah 84056-582- 4 www.hilItoptimes.com hilltop.pahill.af.mil Vol. 57 No. 43. November 1, 2001 H War wbDB comtDnne Until Americans can live without fear, defense secretary says by Rudl Williams American Forces Press Service INSIDE: Campaign at 50 percent Page 2 Heroes show character 3 WASHINGTON Pointing out that the Al Qaeda terrorist network crosses more than 50 countries. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said the task is to go after it, and the Taliban, "until Americans can go about their lives without fear." Rumsfeld and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Richard Myers spoke to the press Oct. 29. "We didn't start the war, the terrorists started it when they attacked the United States, murdering more than 5,000 innocent Americans," Rumsfeld said. "The Taliban, an illegitimate, unelected group of terrorists started it when they invited the Al Qaeda into Afghanistan and turned their country into a base from which those terrorists could strike out and kill our citizens." Rumsfeld fcft no doubt where lie believes cating worldwide terrorism wouldn't responsibility for the war belongs. "Let there be no doubt, responsibility for every single casualty in this war, be they innocent Afghan or innocent Americans, rests at the feet of Taliban and Al Qaeda," he said. "Their leaderships are the ones that are hiding in mosques and using Afghan civilians as human shields by placing their armor and artillery in close proximity to civilian schools, hospitals and the like." As the campaign against terrorism enters its fourth week, coalition forces continue strikes against Taliban and Al Qaeda targets throughout Afghanistan, the secretary said. "Our goal is not to reduce or simply contain terrorist acts, but is to deal with it comprehensively," he said. "We don't intend to stop until we've rooted out terrorist networks and put them out of business. Not just in the case of the Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, but other networks as well" But Rumsfeld reiterated that eradi happen overnight. "It's a marathon, not a sprint," he told reporters. "It will be years, not weeks or months." Victory will not come without a cost, he said. "(War is ugly. It causes misery, suffering and death, and we see that everyday," he said. "Brave peo- ple give their lives for this cause. Needless to say, innocent bystanders can be caught in crossfire." Rumsfeld said at every press briefing he and Myers are asked to respond to Taliban accusations about civilian casualties, much of it unsubstantiated propaganda. "There are instances where there are unintended effects of this conflict and ordnance ends up where it should not," he said. "That's true of every conflict. "As a nation that lost thousands of innocent civilians on Sept 1 1, we understand what it means to lose fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters," Rumsfeld said. But no nation in liistory has done more to avoid civilian casualties than the United States, he said. "Every day in the midst of war, Americans risk their lives to deliver humanitarian assistance and alleviate the suffering of the Afghan people," he said. "When the Taliban issue accusations of civilian casualties, they indict themselves." America's task is to put pressure on Al Qaeda and the Taliban to dry up their finance, continue the arrests and interrogations and to gather every scrap of information and intelligence possible, the secretary said. "It's to continue to force them to move from cave to cave and tunnel to tunnel," Rumsfeld said. "It's to continue to providing humanitarian assistance. And it's to find and stop the Al Qaeda and Taliban military leadership to keep them from continuing their terrorist acts." Safety slide f! 75tn OSS explained 16 YouiJi enjoy Halloween i7 Relief Act useful during deployment 8 4t Hi I. . i;i i " '"" ; If : x Photos by Marvin Lynchard safety chute, designed to help runway control tower personnel exit the top story quickly and safely in an emergency, was successfully tested last week. The chute's designer got the Idea from a turkey wrapper. See related story and photos, Page 9. A Egress team keeps ejection seats working by Gary Boyle Hilltop Times ( staff For pilots in the 388th Fighter Wing, the ejection seat in their jet may be the only thing separating them from life and death when things go wrong. The Aircrew Egress Systems team ensures the seat will come out before the jet goes down. "When you look at the seat there are so many things involved that it's hard to picture. Everything hap- pens so fast it's hard to tell what comes first and what follows. The whole thing takes about three seconds," said AES Journeyman Senior Airman Marc Miller, who's been working on seats for three years. What happens when the pilot of an 6 pulls the ejection control handle located at the base of the seat is a series of actions that takes place almost simultaneously. , According AES Production Supervisor Tech. Sgt James Laselute two explosive ejection initiators fire and expend hot gas to other initiators that begin a series of events. Gas goes to the detonation transfer assembly, which is a firing line that reacts at about a mile per second that fires the canopy removal rockets which assist the canopy to be blown off. An 6 canopy is held by a single joint that disintegrates in the blast allowing the canopy to fly free from the aircraft After the canopy is gone hot gases initiate the catapult rockets that propel the seat from the plane. In approximately one second the seat leaves the F-1- Volunteers fluff Olympic snow Page 11 six-fo- ot F-1- Pilot turns 108 Pages 12 POOR rails and is propelled about 200 feet from the plane, as a drogue parachute is released slowing the pilot down. A recover sequencer immediately gathers data on altitude and speed from two tubes that protrude from the top left and right sides of the seat This information is fed to a computer in the chair which controls a gyroscope connected to a series of pulleys and a tiny rocket called a STAPAC that keeps the seat in an upright position so the pilot doesn't tumble upside down or sideways out of control. When the pilot falls to approximately 14,000 feet and if environmental, speed and directional condi- - tions are conducive, the main parachute deploys while the pilot is released from the seat. The pilot then floats to the ground with a survival kit con- DANGER taining essentials such as food, water and a beacon to alert rescue teams. If the plane is still on the ground or in flight and the cockpit begins to fill with smoke from the environmental systems the pilot has the option to just blow the canopy off. It's all up to the pilot, said Lasue-lut- XT e. f C "One thing we don't get to do is test the system after we put it in. The only - i test it gets is when it's used," said Lasuelute who has 19 years of experience with ejection seat systems. Photo by Gary Boyle "The system is intercon- Readying an ejection seat for a jet fighter cockpit Tech. Sgt. James Laselute and Senior nected and redundant so Airman Marc Miller check and fine tune the system to ensure its readiness. if one part doesn't work there is a series of backups." time and are exclusive to the 388th FWand its three "There is no room for failure in this job," said Miller. fighter squadrons. ' "A person's life depends on how well we do our job." "We don't get involved with the depot or the 419th "Seats and canopies are removed every three years Fighter Wing. If we need something they're pretty for inspection, but usually get pulled once or twice accommodating," said Laselute. "It takes a number a year either to facilitate other maintenance or trou- of shops to ensure these systems are ready to go. ble shooting on the flight-linbut the big one is for- There is life support, the flight line, equipment mainLaselute. said is a the number tenance squadron, and us." "FOD eign objects," one priority for us." The escape systems are also installed in Whether a pilot drops a pencil, a knob comes off, and bombers as well as jet fighters. or a mechanic loses a screw or a washer. If the object "If something goes wrong, or the plane is shot at can't be found then we have to start taking every- or shot down, our system is the last chance they have thing out of the cockpit including the seat There is to get out safely," said Laselute. "We are very happy an intensive search until the object is found. that our pilots have come away from those types of Shop members can work on up to six seats at one situations safely." e, B-- l, B-5- 2 B-- 2, |