C-5 Galaxy (Fred) info

[faipmafiaofficial]

any tricks for TDY to Lackland for ACIQ? Im planning on living off base with the wife and baby in a furnished apartment for $60 a day.  Anybody know how to get a non A letter other than "get lucky?"  Is it true the dining facility is closed so per diem is full rate for meals?

[bb17]

4 minutes ago, faipmafiaofficial said:

any tricks for TDY to Lackland for ACIQ? Im planning on living off base with the wife and baby in a furnished apartment for $60 a day.  Anybody know how to get a non A letter other than "get lucky?"  Is it true the dining facility is closed so per diem is full rate for meals?

Don't know the answer to your question but I live in town, so if you need any recommendations let me know! Have fun with the C-5 squadrons at Lackland - awesome guys there for sure!

[faipmafiaofficial]

8 minutes ago, bb17 said:

Don't know the answer to your question but I live in town, so if you need any recommendations let me know! Have fun with the C-5 squadrons at Lackland - awesome guys there for sure!

Are Alta Roxbury Apartments in a safe and nice part of town?

[bb17]

30 minutes ago, faipmafiaofficial said:

Are Alta Roxbury Apartments in a safe and nice part of town?

Those are right by Ingram Park Mall which is a pretty ghetto area, and also right off of a major interstate, but not an especially dangerous area. Good news is that there is a nice greenway trail head right by Ingram Park Mall that is a nice 12 mile bike ride straight north to the Six Flags / UTSA area which I highly recommend if you're into biking. 

Also right in line with the runway at Lackland so you might enjoy some planes flying over as well although they should be high enough to not be a noise issue. 

[viper154]

Could try a pit pad if your willing to commute from Randolph area. 

[Heavysimmer]

Can any C5 drivers chime in with some new/updated info on the airframe?

[Swizzle]

3 hours ago, Heavysimmer said:

Can any C5 drivers chime in with some new/updated info on the airframe?

It's ridiculous, and an engineering/economic disaster. That is all.

[Fred_breaker]

On 9/9/2024 at 5:37 PM, Heavysimmer said:

Can any C5 drivers chime in with some new/updated info on the airframe?

Not sure what you're looking for specifically but I can hopefully shed some light. 

Elephant in the room is maintenance. It's bad but it's not the death spiral that it's sometimes made out to be. The major malfunction is parts availability. Big AF decided the C-5 was due for retirement and shut down our whole supply chain. Then they decided they need the C-5 until there's a replacement, so we're still flying despite a practically non-existent supply chain. The jet itself is really a slightly-below-average MAF asset in terms of how often it breaks, its the timeline to fix it that's the killer for us.

Like everywhere else in the MAF, flying hours and TDY rates are highly variable based on a number of factors. If you're not chained to a desk you'd be able to expect 1 ~30 hour mission per month. Add some sims and locals on top of that. When it gets busy you'll see more than that, when it's less busy you may see less. Add in all other factors like upgrade, leave, etc. and you get the variability. 

The jet and the community are excellent. The O-4+ types still in FRED have passed some level of bro-check to be in the community that late in their career. The airplane is super unique and presents unique challenges. I promise you won't work as hard to f--ing taxi any other airplane as long as you live. 

Hit me with any other questions, happy to answer. 

Edited September 14 by Fred_breaker