Texas Army Guard retires Army's last A-model AH-64 Apache helicopter

By Sofia Bledsoe

Program Executive Office, Aviation

REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. (7/17/12) - It was a proud, historic and emotional moment for the Soldiers of the Texas Army National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 149th Aviation Regiment (Attack/Reconnaissance) as the last AH-64A Apache helicopter, aircraft 451, was “retired” from the Army and handed over to the Project Office for Apache Helicopters during a ceremony on Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base in Houston, July 15. The event was hosted by the battalion as it was the unit that had the last A-model Apache in its fleet.

The aircraft will be flown to San Angelo, Texas, by Chief Warrant Officer Five Jim Sandberg, standardization pilot with the unit, and Chief Warrant Officer Two Adrian Domonoski, maintenance test officer with the unit, where it will be ‘depopulated’ or disassembled, then reconfigurated into the next generation AH-64D Apache Longbow.

“As the Project Manager for the Apache attack helicopter, I’m really proud to take custody of the 451,” said Army Col. Shane Openshaw. “In about a year from now, you’ll see 451 come out of the production line as the latest and last AH-64D.”

And many in the unit were sad to see the aircraft go, despite its scheduled return as an upgraded model.

“It’s like losing an old friend,” said Army Capt. Stacy James Rostorfer, commander of B Company, 1st Bn., 149th Avn. Regt. “That aircraft has saved my life; it has saved many lives. It’s armored in all the right places, so you can go in, protect others and protect yourself. We always brought everybody home.” 

Rostorfer said he had been an Apache fan as a young man and recalled playing with Apache models when he was ten years old. “They’re still in the basement of my parents’ house. I’ll never part with it.”

During the ceremony, Army Lt. Col. Derrek Hryhorchuk, commander of the battalion, recounted the unit’s heroism, remembering that aircraft 451 kept them safe and alive. 

“We’re going to make sure that aircraft goes out in style,” he said. Hryhorchuk had flown the Apache’s predecessor, the AH-1 Cobra, and noted that things that needed to be improved in the Cobra were in place in the A-model Apache. “I’m looking forward to the capabilities that needed to be improved in the A-model that are now in the D-model Longbow.”

Despite the highlight of the aircraft, the ceremony also focused on the Soldiers.

  “I’m not here to talk about the aircraft,” said Army Maj. Gen. William “Tim” Crosby, program executive officer for Army aviation. “I’m here to talk about you. You, the Soldiers of the Texas National Guard, who have stood up and said, ‘I want to make a difference. I want to give back to my country’. And it’s your pride, your courage, your passion that make that aircraft special. Because aircraft don’t fly. Aviators fly. And they fly because of the mechanics and the crew chiefs who make them ready to fly.”

Aircraft 451 has had a long and proud history with the unit, who was recently nominated for the Valorous Unit Award. Four of its aviators had been recognized for their heroism and extraordinary achievements with the Distinguished Flying Crosses in Ramadi, Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Aircraft 451 took numerous heavy ballistic damage, but the aircraft and crew and the Soldiers they protected always came home safely.

 In one case, aircraft 451 was used to quite literally bring a wounded Soldier home.

During a firefight that took place when the unit was deployed to Iraq, an infantry Soldier was seriously wounded. Traditional medical evacuation assets were not able to respond. The crew of aircraft 451 landed and placed the wounded Soldier in the front seat of the Apache. The co-pilot/ gunner, who would normally occupy that seat, attached himself to the aircraft by the wing and fuselage holds. The wounded Soldier was quickly treated and provided the advanced care he needed. In the end, he recovered fully from his wounds.

For this action, the crew was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

“After you get through a couple of weeks in combat, you strap yourself into an Apache, you feel a sense of invincibility,” said Col. Richard Adams, 36th CAB commander. “There are a lot of sons and daughters in America who are alive because of that aircraft.”

'Gunfighters' Keep Apache Helicopters Flying in Iraq

American Forces Press Service

Dec. 19, 2007 - In today's world of technologically advanced aviation, Army pilots alone cannot keep AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopters operational without ground crews. Sustaining the intricate workings of digital and complex avionics requires proficient ground crews and technical personnel. Soldiers of 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, known as the Gunfighters, work diligently around the clock maintaining, testing and sustaining the Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division's battalion of Apache attack and reconnaissance gunships in northern Iraq.

Preventive maintenance is a major facet of success for the Apache ground crews, officials said.

"We do preventive maintenance services, which is a basic teardown of the aircraft, checking for common things that are broken," said Army Spc. Jedediah Cooke, an Apache crew chief with the battalion's Company C. "In addition, we do 50-hour inspections to check out the major flight controls."

Not all the work the ground crews perform on the Apaches is routine or scheduled.

"If aircraft were to come back (from a combat sortie) with possible flaws or a deficiency, it is our mission to ensure maintenance is conducted and aircraft are repaired, put back in the air and remain flyable at all times," said Sgt. 1st Class Antonio Ruiz, maintenance platoon sergeant with Company C.

"As the platoon sergeant, I oversee maintenance on the flight line. I have my crew (mechanic section) along with the armament section that I utilize. When aircraft return broken in any way, I go ahead and look at the aircraft, and take a look at the fault the pilots give me," Ruiz said.

"I go ahead and hand it out or delegate the fault to the back shops so they are repaired in a timely manner. There are a lot of eyes looking at the aircraft. There is the soldier, the supervisor and the technical inspector," Ruiz said.

"Everybody takes this job really serious because you want to do the best you can; you don't want any birds going down, especially out there during a mission," said Army Spc. Christopher Lara, an Apache repair mechanic with Company C.

"We are supporting ground units in northern Iraq, providing coverage from the air. It makes you feel good, (because) without air support, the ground troops would not have that (added protection)," Lara said.

Cooke said he also takes pride in his job. He knows if an Apache takes off from the tarmac, it is heading out to support American, Iraqi and coalition forces.

"I think I do help those guys out there kicking in doors. I have been told by infantrymen that they love to see these aircraft fly over. This is why we work as hard as we can," said Sgt. Chris Martin, another Apache repair mechanic with Company C.

Pilots appreciate the hard work that goes into a stringent aircraft maintenance program.

"These guys are working on $30 million aircraft. They keep track of numerous moving pieces, working six days a week, sometimes even working on their days off. It is very impressive to see what they do on a daily basis," said Chief Warrant Officer Joseph Thompson, a maintenance test pilot with Company C.

Teamwork and everybody knowing their job also contribute to the complete aircrafts' safety and effectiveness.

"When aircraft land, they may have avionics or electrical problems, and there are separate shops to deal with each; we also work with production control," Martin said. "I trust armament, and I trust my shops."

"Depending what the maintenance issue is, we are out there working with the armament section. They know their job, and they want us helping them, and we are out there getting them what they need," Lara said. "Everybody knows their jobs. ... It all works together, and it ensures we all know what it takes to keep the birds flying."

(From a Multinational Corps Iraq news release.)