30-05-2025
Military Matters: A Birdseye View of Altus AFB
ALTUS (KFDX/KJTL) — From an outsider's perspective, one might expect to see smaller planes like fighter jets at an air force base. That's not always the case.
Altus Air Force Base is a bit different, housing planes that are slightly larger than fighter jets. One of which is the C-17, piloted by Lt. Col. J.D. Shaw.
'Altus's mission is to train pilots and loadmasters how to operate this airplane so they can go out to their base, whether it be Charleston, McChord, Dover, McGuire and then employ this airplane around the world,' Shaw said.
Altus Air Force Base specializes in air mobility. All three planes they train, the KC-135, KC-46, and C-17, accomplish this through their unique missions. The C-17 is most specialized toward cargo delivery, according to Loadmaster trainer, Sr. Master Sgt. Kris Mack.
'We're more concerned with the cargo compartment as far as loading cargo, and you have to be prepared,' Mack said. 'It could be a tank in there, it could be a palette, it could be something quite easy. It could be humanitarian aid. It could be, you know, things that take a little bit more concentration as far as the restraint.'
Another aspect of air mobility is ensuring that planes can travel from point A to point B, regardless of the distance. Lt. Col. Broderick Lockett trains crews to refuel planes in midair with the KC-135.
'You know, think you're going 400 miles an hour down the highway and actually reaching out with another car and holding on to each other, and you know, shaking hands,' Lockett said. 'That's what we do. Except at 26,000 feet, you know, going up to 600 miles an hour.'
Not all air refueling looks or works the same. Altus Air Force Base also has one of the more advanced aircraft designed for mid-air refueling, the KC-46 Pegasus, which can both give and receive fuel. A unique trait that Lt. Col. Scott Heinlein believes makes it a vital tool in any situation the aircraft is in.
'Instead of having to fly all the way back to our base, get gas again, we can find another tanker that has already taken off from that base, take that fuel in the air so that it extends that range even closer,' Heinlein said. 'So, the net result is we get our receivers closer to the fight, making them more effective in combat.'
At the center of it all, for the base, though, is the relationship it has with the city of Altus. Lt. Col. Shaw says he's been more involved with the surrounding community at Altus than at any other base he's ever been to.
'The city is super welcoming,' Shaw said. 'I think they recognize the value that Altus brings to the city. And so, it is a true relationship that one could not survive without the other.'
Both city and base, dedicated to the same mission for over 80 years. Keeping America's Air Force mobile and strong.
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