During the week of 10 December, 2006, Pavel Romashkin and Lowell Genzlinger traveled to Tokyo , Japan and Anchorage , Alaska for a site survey for the Pacific Dust Experiment (PACDEX) to be conducted during April and May, 2007.
On Monday, Pavel and Lowell met at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo with Colonel Ed McAllister, U.S. Air Force Air Attache, Mr. Larry Weber, Director, NSF Tokyo Regional Office and Kazuko Shinohara, Scientific Affairs Assistant. A Briefing was given to them on the science objectives and operations of the PACDEX Project. They were very interested in the project and willing to assist with any help we needed. We will submit a diplomatic clearance request thru official channels within the next month and send advance copies to Colonel McAllister and Michael Bishop, Yokota AFB, to avoid delays. Colonel McAllister arranged a meeting the next day for us at Yokota AFB.
On Tuesday, we traveled to Yokota AFB to meet with individuals from the various departments on the base to see if they could support the G-V operations. SMsgt. Arthur Griffenkranz, Superintendent, Aviation Affairs arranged the meeting and is our contact at the base. Yokota AFB is about 1 ½ hours traveling time from our hotel going on the subway and two different train lines and then a short taxi ride to the base. We met with about 20 different people from the base that would provide support. There were no show stoppers and we would be of minimal impact. No one at the meeting was at the level to approve our use of the base. Basically, all we need is a place to land, parking, crew transport, fuel, lavatory service, customs and Base operations for flight plan filing. Since we do not operate under the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between the Governments of Japan and U.S. we have to be sponsored by the U.S. Embassy and there is no formal request by us to Yokota AFB as it will be handled with a phone call or E-mail from the Air Attache.
The base is closed the second Friday of every month and the hours of flight operations are 0600-2200 Local. The time in Japan is 16 hours ahead of MST. Fuel is available 24 hours a day. Where we would be parking the aircraft, there were no restrictions with easy access to the aircraft by walking. There is no C-37A (G-V) tow bar so we should take our collapsible tow bar in case it is needed. A hangar would not be required unless some unusual weather is predicted. Gaseous Oxygen is available for the aircraft. Our government credit card is accepted for fuel. If there any foreign nationals on the G-V, advance notice of 60-90 days would be required for a background check and it is basically discouraged. It was suggested that off-base quarters be obtained rather than using base facilities, and we agree. The base will probably supply a crew bus to transport the crew to and from hotels off-base.
Air traffic control from the base were at the meeting but were of little help for the area of our operations. All they are concerned about is the local area of approach control at Yokota. There are no SIDS of STARS with only radar vectors to ILS at the airport. Larry Arima from the FAA who is located at the embassy was out of town so we could not meet with him. He is Japanese and was helpful during the ACE-ASIA project. He will be our first contact in resolving any problems with ATC.
The area around the base is not very upscale, with few options for eating or visiting. It is mostly very dense residential area, with one large shopping center and no good hotels. Therefore, we left the AFB and went to Tachikawa via taxi which is about ½ hour and $40 taxi fare. This is a very nice business district with a couple of nice hotels which were recommended by the base for lodging with a contract rate. The Tachikawa Palace Hotel and Tachikawa Grand Hotel were both looked at and both would be adequate. There is shopping and restaurants in the area within walking distance from the hotels; therefore no individual transportation is necessary for the short stays for the GV flight crew. The AFB is willing to provide crew bus rides for the GV crew to and from the hotel for arrival and departure of the airplane.
As much notice as possible will be given to the base about the GV arrival, and crew lists will have to be sent in advance to ensure that base access is in place for crew members.
Above: Tachikawa Palace hotel lobby features a restaurant and exits onto two streets leading into the nearby business district and train station (5 min walk, image below), with many places to visit, eat at and shop.
Above and below: Hotel rooms are clean, new and feature all necessary amenities, including internet connections.
Three FBOs and the FAA facility were visited, and all can provide the necessary services for the GV and the crew. The government contract fuel is available through Signature Air, which also has hangar space (shared with other customers) and power carts. The most suitable option appears to be the FAA facility. The GV will be put in the hangar. Ground power is available in the hangar, but not outside; if it is necessary, we can obtain the power cart from Signature or ship our own. We will check if warm-up in the hangar is sufficient for the investigators, with subsequent quick rollout, fueling and take-off. The FAA hangar has all needed support equipment, such as oxygen, nitrogen and a tow tug, which our mechanics are allowed to operate on their own to move the GV in and out of the hangar.
Above: Signature Air facility. Fuel is located here but will be delivered to the GV on request.
Access to the FAA hangar will be with the use of access cards, we will need to send in a list of personnel allowed in the hangar and several cards will be issued (one per group of people).
Transportation will consist of a rental car and two vans, driven by the second crew that will be deployed to Anchorage several days in advance of the GV arrival. This crew will meet the GV and take people to the hotel, and transport them to the hangar for departure.
Customs will be cleared at a different ramp upon arrival, and we will seek the help from Signature to bus the crew to customs and to the airplane.
There are several hotel options available, including several hotels close to the airport and several in downtown Anchorage . We feel that the downtown option is better, as there are a number of eating and shopping establishments within walking distance, which is important for the GV crew having no individual cars. The driving time from the downtown area to the airport is 10-15 minutes. We stayed at Captain Cook hotel and it is adequate for housing the GV crew and the second crew. Other downtown options include Sheraton, Marriott and Hilton.
Access the Powerpoint presentation we gave at the Embassy (15 Mb file) or small Powerpoint file with brief flight plans only (700 kb file).
If you have any questions please E-mail Pavel Romashkin: pavel at ucar edu.