AGE, and I Don't Mean in Years

F-4s and Dash-60s, Korat RTAFB
(Source)

"Okay Sarge, that "AGE" in the title (which we're now assuming by the rest of the title has nothing to do with chronological age), what is that? It's another damn acronym, innit?"

Well, yes, yes it is.

AGE, or Aerospace Ground Equipment, were the various power, air conditioning, air start, and hydraulic units we used in the performance of our duties on the flight line. In my old line of work, we used the power/air start units which we called the "Dash-60" (or just plain -60)  but technically speaking were A/M32A-60 Generators. We used them every time we had to apply power to the jet.

Now I've written before of these pieces of equipment which were so vital to our work, that was here, and I note that there's another story I mention in that post which I need to tell, someday, POCIR. Remind me, if you think of it.

Anyhoo, we WCS gorillas used the -60 to supply electrical power to the aircraft. The crew chiefs used them for that and to provide bleed air to start the engines. Always an awe-inspiring and mind-numbingly loud experience. (If you look at the -60 in the background, you can see the black power cable semi-secured, semi-draped on the side of the unit. On the -60 in the foreground that gray hose with the black rings was for the bleed air.)

Now the -60 contained a small gas turbine engine which had the tendency to scare the living shite out of me each and every time I had to start one of those beasts. They would start with a whine and the RPMs would gradually build until the dang thing would give off this loud "WUFF!" as the engine would finally catch. Or it would just keep whining and never really light off.

Occasionally the damn things would shoot flames out of the vertical exhaust on top of the unit. Also the units had a red line painted on them which marked the plane of rotation of the wee jet engine inside. If the damn thing came apart you didn't want to be aligned with that red line. That line was the "stand here to get shredded when this damned thing comes apart" indicator. So to speak.

As you might gather, I wasn't exceedingly fond of those beasts.

Here's a video of one not starting properly, the outer panels have been removed so you can see the insides.

Did you see those flames? Now those civilian fellers were being kinda nonchalant with that damned thing. I would have shut it off as soon as it decided to just whine and not kick over. (I think it was Russ who once fell over laughing when the one we were using one night shot flames about ten feet in the air. I pretty much jumped even higher and was half way down the flight line before I realized that the freaking -60 wasn't going to explode and end me. Funny looking back on it, wasn't funny at the time.)

Now here's one that starts up real nice. (And it's got all its panels on it.)

No big WUFF!, which is a good thing. I always thought the WUFF would occur just before the damned thing blew up. Those things hated me.

I was happy in Kunsan where we had built in power for the aircraft in our hangar, no big mean noisy -60s. I don't remember what we had on Kadena, Russ?

Here's a picture of one of the beasts next to an RF-4C (reconnaissance version of the mighty Phantom).

(Source)

For those who wonder about such things (and the Wing Safety types), yes that -60 is too close to the aircraft. It's supposed to be far enough away so that if blows up, or catches on fire, or one of the billion other sneaky ways it had to kill you, it wouldn't damage the aircraft. The guy starting the thing? Oh yeah, he's toast. (But it's a museum display, so it's okay. Did we ever stretch the cable all the way out? Of course not.)

Here's a -60 being used to start the engines on an F-4E at an airshow in Cleveland a while back.

While it has nothing to do with the -60, I should mention that there was another way to start the engines on the F-4, that was called a "cart start," cart being short for cartridge. They're actually like shotgun shells (no shot, just powder) which can be used to jump start the engines. Good for bare bones bases without a lot of equipment on hand, no -60 needed.

The first time I ever saw one of these I thought the jet across the way had exploded. (Now that I think on it, that's the only cart start I ever saw, that was on Okinawa.)

Here's a video of a cart start.

Look Ma! No power cart!

Man, do I miss the sound of those big General Electric J79 engines.

Good times.