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As with any story, it has a beginning and an end. This story is no different.
This story began on a clear sunny day with Flight Ops running near peak. The Deck hands were very busy and over worked. Most everybody had had very little sleep for the past four days. The aircraft, S2Fs, had been scheduled for maximum up time. A new sortie was being staged and with Ops running so tight, the use of the battery or mobile APUs was discouraged. 24 Volt power was available along the deck edge and orders were given to use it. To facilitate this, long cables were use to carry the 24 volt power to the aircraft. These cables were very heavy and it usually took two men to handle it. These cables were designed to prevent the wrong power polarity from being applied to the aircraft. They were made with a square end, which plugged into the deck edge outlet and a rounded end which plugged into the aircraft. But with Flight Ops running at a feverish pitch, coupled with sleep deprivation, a serious mistake was bound to happen. And it did! The cable had been disconnected from the deck edge outlet and a Deck Hand grabbed the first end he saw and pulled it toward the aircraft. Of course, it was the wrong end. The ironic thing was that the rounded end would plug into the deck edge outlet but the square end would not plug into the aircraft Power receptacle. The enterprising Deck Hand, not wanting to take the time to reverse the cable ends decided to make the square end fit. He took out his pocket knife and whittled the corners down until it would fit into the receptacle. Needless to say, when the cable was plugged in, sparks flew everywhere. As a result, the aircraft was down for several weeks while the electrical system was being rewired. I don’t know what ever became of the Deck Hand but I know I never saw him around the planes again. Joe Dunegan, AE2/AC, VS-37 ’56 – ‘57 |
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