ASOG Article of the Month: April 2022
ASOG Author: Patrick Ryan
I had a chance this month to interview one of our long-running ASOG members – Charlie Locke. When I heard that Charlie, after 40 years, was parking his ASO job into the hanger, I thought it would be good to reach out to Charlie to do a quick “Post-Flight Debrief” of his ASO career. So with that, I connected with Charlie to learn more about his career, thoughts about the ASO profession, and the future.
Charlie, you said you’re retiring after 40 years of working. Could you give us a rundown of what kind of jobs and aircraft you flew over those years?
USAF – Sensor Operator AC-130 A & H model Gunships - Operation Just Cause and Operation Desert Storm & Shield. Those Gunships had the AAD-7 IR and required hooking up a LOX Cart to the aircraft to cool it down - which took 20 minutes to achieve. Also, there was no GPS, no moving maps, no nice floating north arrows, no grids on the screen, just a reticle. Instead, we used a whiskey compass and 1 to 50 charts, navigation by INS and Loran when available.
Airscan, Inc - Cessna 337, Tigershark UAV, and Hunter UAV – Kosovo, Bosnia, Africa, Iraq, and Afghanistan – Used ISS v-14, MX-15, SAR Radar.
What were some of the “Positives” and “Negatives” of being an ASO?
Positives – good pay, made some great friends.
Negatives - Away from home a lot, sometimes months at a time.
What was the most challenging or dangerous flight or flights you ever experienced, and what did you learn?
1991 Battle of Al Khafji – being shot at by 57mm, 85mm, dodging AAA, not fun - I was on Spectre 02 that night when Spectre 03 was shot down, and 14 of my friends died.
As a civilian contractor in Iraq, we were flying along the Syrian and Iraqi border looking for smugglers when we were shot at by Quad 23mm ZSU-23x4s from the Syrians. Plus, an SA-7 from the Iraqi side.
In Afghanistan, while at FOB Ghazni in 2013 as a SAR Operator on UAVs doing counter IED missions, we were attacked by the Taliban. A VBIED blew out 75 FT of Hesco Barriers, followed by Taliban suicide fighters storming in.
What would you recommend to future ASOs and non-rated aircrew members regarding the type of training and education they should pursue?
Survival Training, practicing counter AAA and SAM evasion techniques, learning how to find targets with a compass and a map, and not relying on GPS or moving maps. Unfortunately, I have seen a lot of sensor operators who don’t know how to do that!
O.K. Charlie, before “Shutting Down the Engines,” will you miss flying?
I do miss it sometimes!
On behalf of the ASOG community, Charlie, I want to say super Congratulations on your retirement and wish you all the best with your future! You and I know many of the same people in our profession, and the word is that you were always the mainstay as an ASO! With that – don’t “punch out” of ASOG yet. We still need your experience & wisdom!
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Charlie Locke