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Pigging the Diesel Pipeline between the Landmark
Red Hill Facility and Pearl Harbor
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The 32-inch, 18-inch, and 16-inch fuel lines inside the harbor tunnel near the underground pump house carry fuel down the 3.5-mile harbor tunnel from the Red Hill Fuel Storage Facility to Pearl Harbor. Photo courtesy of 14th Naval District, Pearl Harbor.
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Navy uses ultrasonic ‘smart pig’ technology
to evaluate integrity of 62-year-old fuel line
By Cynthia Greenwood
Years before the Japanese attacked the Pearl Harbor fleet in 1941, the U.S. Navy recognized that the aboveground fuel storage tanks near the harbor were a vulnerable enemy target. Searching for a way to replace them, the Navy devised a plan to create an underground fuel storage facility that would serve as an invisible lifeline for battleships during World War II.
The Red Hill Underground Fuel Storage Facility is considered a modern engineering marvel. It is hidden several hundred feet below Red Hill, a mountain of volcanic rock located 7.5 miles north of Honolulu between the Moanalua and Halawa valleys. Built between 1940 and 1943, the facility is made up of 20 huge, capsule-shaped tanks situated vertically underground. To construct the complex, the Navy used advanced mining techniques and employed thousands of laborers to carve out the tank farm’s intricate series of shafts, domes, and tunnels out of the volcanic rock.
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Halvorsen Loader Proves Reliable for Aircrews
that Support Troops
Cargo Loaders in Desert Undergo Corrosion Testing
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The Halvorsen Cargo Loader, preparing for a storage experiment. Photo courtesy of the Air Force Tunner/Halvorsen Systems Squadron.
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By Cynthia Greenwood
Next to Balad Airbase in Iraq, Charleston Air Force Base (AFB) is the busiest cargo hub in the Air Force. Billed as the FedEx for U.S. Army and Marine troops stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan, the 437th Aerial Port Squadron at Charleston AFB loads and transports 300 tons of cargo daily.
“We send the soldiers anything from Juicy Fruit gum to marine transport vehicles, and everything in between, like AC units, gym equipment, camel backs (for drinking water), and things to do with making a soldier’s life better,” said Lt. William Minor, who leads Combat Readiness and Resources Flight for the squadron.
“The huge key for the troops is the add-on armor that you see on all Humvees,” Lt. Minor said. “That’s saving lives every day.”
“Between January 1 and August 26, Charleston Air Force Base has moved more than 72,500 tons of cargo and logged 9,981 departures,” said Lt. Bryan Lewis, Chief of Media Relations for the 437th Airlift Wing Public Affairs Office. To keep up its relentless pace in supporting troops overseas, the Air Force relies on a mechanical beast of burden that rarely sees the limelight. The Halvorsen cargo loader is small, weights 25,000 pounds, and can reach the cargo doors of military and commercial aircraft.
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