Disclaimer: Truckin On is an unofficial newsletter published every month in the interest of serving Air Force active duty, civilian and retired vehicle operations

and maintenance personnel. Articles submitted by its contributors are not to be considered official statements by the U.S. Air Force.

1 Mar 2015

Dedicated to the Men and Women of

AF Vehicle Operations & Maintenance Past, Present, and Future

Truckin on

Special Points of Interest:

CMSgt Gary Snyder PG 1

Motor Vessel Capt David I. Lyon PG 1-3

Nissan legend Yutaka Katayama, aka Mr. K, dies at 105

(See story at website above)

Inside this issue:

Ford Shelby GT350R PG 3

3rd Motor Transport Squadron PG 4

The Survey Says. PG 5 -12

Nevada County Scooper PG 12

Is Your Car Being Hacked PG 13 -14

Jan & Dean.Eat Your Hearts

Out! PG 15

Resurrecting a mission: Family

christens ship for fallen Airman

by Capt. Nicholas Mercurio,

1st Combat Camera Squadron

RELATED LINKS

Ship named in honor of Air Force captain

SOUTHPORT, N.C. (AFNS) -- (Editor's

note: Capt. David Lyon, a logistics

officer from Peterson Air Force Base,

Colorado, was killed in Afghanistan, Dec.

27, 2013. Air Force officials honored

Lyon by naming the services newest

pre-positioning vessel after him.

Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee

James and Secretary of the Navy Ray

Mabus conducted the official naming

ceremony of Motor Vessel Capt. David I.

Lyon Jan. 14, at the Pentagon.

The following article recounts the

christening of the vessel Aug. 11, 2014,

in Southport, North Carolina.)

A single-lane road snakes its way

through the knot of North Carolina pines

that guards the shoreline at the Military

Ocean Terminal Sunny Point.

Capt. Dana M. Lyon, widow of Capt. David I. Lyon, prepares to break a champagne bottle on the hull of the Motor Vessel Capt. David I. Lyon during a christening and ship visit, Aug. 11, 2014, at Military Ocean Terminal Sunny Point, Southport, N.C. The MV Capt. David I. Lyon is an Air Force prepositioning vessel named in honor of Capt. David I. Lyon, an Air Force logistics readiness officer and 2008 U.S. Air Force Academy graduate who was killed in action Dec. 27, 2013, in Afghanistan. The vessel will transport critical war reserve materiel to locations around the globe. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Jason Robertson)

Continued on PG 2

In Memoriam CMSgt Gary Snyder

Nov 18, 1939 Feb 25, 2015

AFSC 47200

Heres to you and those like you; damn few left

Rest in Peace

It runs parallel to a bundle of railroad tracks whose tributaries

occasionally splice across the road and curve out of view. Lined

along the tracks are dozens of cars laden with containers

marked as property of the U.S. government and destined for

faraway places. Past the waiting cars, the road arcs gently to the

right as the closeness of the trees recedes and gives way to the

wide-open expanse of the Cape Fear River surrounding the

central pier. A large container ship looms suddenly ahead, riding

high and still on the water for lack of cargo and displaying a

freshly-painted name on her bow.

David was very determined as a boy, Jeannie Lyon said. It is

the morning of Aug. 11, 2014, the day she would see the ship

that bears her sons name for the first time. If he got it in his

mind to do something, there was no way he wasnt going to do

it.

Her son, Capt. David I. Lyon, was killed on Dec. 27, 2013, when

a vehicle borne improvised explosive device struck his convoy in

Afghanistan.

A boy who stayed late after football and basketball games to

mop the locker room floor, David grew into a man who fulfilled

his dream of graduating from the U.S. Air Force Academy. He

would later go on to personify servant leadership as an Air Force

captain and logistics readiness officer.

Mrs. Lyon felt exhilarated on May 28, 2008, as she watched her

son collect his diploma and walk across the stage to high-five

former President George W. Bush.

She confided what the president told David while shaking his

hand. He said to him, I want you to go home. I want you to be a

leader, and I want you to make a difference in this world, she

said.

David took those words to heart and strove to meet that

challenge every day. He was a true patriot, said Robert Lyon,

Davids father. He loved his country.

While he made a difference to many, David had the most lasting

and profound impact on his wife of five years and fellow

Academy graduate, Capt. Dana Lyon. He was the best thing to

ever happen to my world, she said.

Although they were recruited by the Academy to play different

sports, both eventually found their way to the track and field

team, and to each other. He was a strong leader and a godly

man, Dana said. He took care of my heart.

Seven months after her husbands death, Dana is still struggling

to pick up the pieces. Its difficult to take on something by

yourself when youve been doing it together for a while, she

said. In October 2012, David volunteered for a deployment to

Afghanistan as an air advisor.

He wanted to get in the fight, Dana said. Not that he was

looking for a fight, but that he wanted to serve, to do the

mission.

At the time, Dana had jokingly threatened to volunteer as well

until orders came down for her own deployment. They were both

serving in Afghanistan at the time of his death; their last day

together was Christmas Day at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan.

Neither one of us held the other back from what we were trying

to achieve, she said. I think that if Dave had to do it over again,

hed do it again in a heartbeat because he knew what he was

doing was making a difference.

As Dana reflected on Davids latest achievement of having a

ship renamed for him, she described it as an honor she never

wanted but is grateful to have.

I think its awesome that its a logistics ship, and Dave was a

logistics officer, she said. However, she pointed to a deeper

connection as her source of solace during this difficult time.

He cast ripples, she said. His spirit and leadership inspired so

many, just as the ship that bears his name will continue to make

ripples.

Capt. Jonathan Tolman and Staff Sgt. Charles Taherimorovat render a salute to the American flag during reveille onboard the Motor Vessel Capt. David I. Lyon before the vessel's christening Aug. 11, 2014, at Military Ocean Terminal Sunny Point in Southport, N.C. The MV Capt. David I. Lyon is an Air Force prepositioning vessel named in honor of Capt. David I. Lyon, an Air Force logistics readiness officer and 2008 U.S. Air Force Academy graduate who was killed in action Dec. 27, 2013, in Afghanistan. The vessel will transport critical war reserve materiel to locations around the globe. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Jason Robertson)

Continued on PG 3

1 Mar 2015

2

On Aug. 11, 2014, Dana and her family, alongside Jeannie and

Robert Lyon, were at MOTSU to christen and tour the vessel

before it departed to perform its wartime mission. Seeing it for

the first time, the pride they feel is tempered by the lingering

immediacy of their bereavement.

Words come slowly at first, and voices are thick with emotion.

However, as Dana, a world-class javelin thrower and 2008

Olympic-hopeful, launched a bottle of champagne and it

smashed against the hull, a thunderous cheer erupted from

family members and onlookers alike, and the somber mood was

instantly transformed to one of celebration.

The newly christened Motor Vessel Capt. David I. Lyon is an Air

Force prepositioning vessel, which will transport 12.5 million

pounds of munitions, or as much as 78 fully loaded C-17

Globemaster III aircraft, overseas to support the warfighter.

Its kind of like hes come full circle, Dana said. Dave never

got a chance to work supply, and now, a supply ship is named

after him. Even though he is gone, his life, his purpose, his

mission will continue.

Additional photos can be viewed at the following website:

http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/560198/

resurrecting-a-mission-family-christens-ship-for-fallen-

airman.aspx?source=GovD

The Motor Vessel Capt. David I. Lyon sits docked at Military Ocean Terminal Sunny Point, Southport, N.C, before the vessel's christening, Aug. 11, 2014. The MV Capt. David I. Lyon is an Air Force prepositioning vessel named in honor of Capt. David I. Lyon, an Air Force logistics readiness officer and 2008 U.S. Air Force Academy graduate who was killed in action Dec. 27, 2013, in Afghanistan. The vessel will transport critical war reserve materiel to locations around the globe. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Jason Robertson)

The Ford Shelby GT350r

Ford shows hot trio including GT supercar successor

Contributor: Mack Burton, CMSgt (Ret/2T1)

This is a tough little rascal. Now you can be one of the first in

your neighborhood to own and drive one of these!

Visit website for more on this amazing car!

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2015/01/12/

ford-performance-cars-gt-raptor-mustang-350r/21629997/

1 Mar 2015

3

Click image to activate video

3rd Motor Transport Squadron

Transportations finest.drum & bugle corps

by Joe OConnor, MSgt (Ret/472)

Just thought I would share a by-gone time with transporters. In

early 1956 my very first duty assignment after automotive

mechanic tech school was RAF Sealand in Wales, Great

Britain. One Saturday of each month was parade Saturday. The

base squadrons would form up on the concrete parade ground

and pass in review for the commanding officer & staff.

The music was presented through the speakers located around

the area, static and all. I was with the 3rd Motor Transport

Squadron and our commander was Captain Jack Bartuska.

He was not very happy with the music being piped in as it would

fade in the wind and troops would lose cadence, so he got

permission to form a drum & bugle corps made up of only

transporters, of which I became a part. We became quite

popular with the base personnel as our sound invigorated the

marching.

As we grew in fame, we started doing goodwill appearances at

small towns and villages in the local area, helping with

celebrations and fetes.

Alas, it lasted only a year or more as the base was slated for

closure. The good thing is that it was our extra duty, which

removed us from KP, base policing duties and such. I look back

on it as probably my best assignment!

Oh, by the way, 3rd Motor was the Air Force freight line for

England, picking up supplies and equipment at the English ports

and delivering them to the bases around the country, lots of

stories to tell there!!

Our fleet was all M-Series vehicles, 5 ton truck tractors, 2.5 ton

truck tractors, 2.5 ton trucks, 3/4 ton trucks, 12 ton Kentucky

trailers, 40 foot trailers and a few Jeeps, not a commercial

vehicle in house!

Editors Comments: This is perhaps the most unique

story weve ever published in Truckin On. We transporters

are familiar with stories about vehicle ops, maintenance or

TMO, but not a drum & bugle corps! Well, thanks to Joe

OConnor, let me introduce you to the 3rd Motor Transport

Squadron Drum & Bugle Corps.

3rd Motor Transport Squadron Drum & Bugle Corps. Joe OConnor is on the left end of the front row.

1 Mar 2015

Newspaper clipping commenting on the 3rd Motor Transport Squadrons appearance at the UK Truck Rodeo finals at Denham Studios.

4

The Survey Says.

What is/was your favorite Air Force vehicle of all

time?

Contributors: Truckin On Members

Tom Picarella

This lacks specifics. However, maybe it will support the same

vehicle from someone with specifics. The vehicle is the adverse

terrain forklift; especially, after the battle-proof tires became

available at Da Nang in 1970. The battle-proof tires reduced or

eliminated tire replacement on deployments.

Joe Cupurdija

My favorite vehicle was an old Jeep in Vietnam. Somehow, it

was pulled out of salvage and somehow it was put into shape to

run again. The main driver: Chaplain Bob Marlowe. Somehow,

someone kept it running. On the front panel under the

windshield God Squad was stenciled.

Again, somehow and someone. Who could turn down a

chaplain, right? The base was Phu Cat. Every now and then,

four of us would pile in the chaplain's Jeep and drive on down to

a beach on the South China Sea. Behind us about 50 yards was

a building that housed lepers. Sometimes, the nuns would treat

us with fruit.

It was said the Americans had the beach in the daytime, while

the Viet Cong had it at night. I think the former chaplain was a

United Methodist and runs a ministry in Southern Ohio/

Northern Kentucky. So, that's my favorite vehicle, though

somewhat odd.

Clint Miller

I have always felt the John Deere 10K AT F/L was one of the

best purchases in the AF Fleet. Perhaps because the leaps

and bounds performance upgrade from the previous Case

models or the simple reliability compared to the CATs.

I could always get it started, strong hydraulics, and when it

came time to clear-out a DRMO yard, I would always be sad to

see one go; however, it made short work of moving the other

clunkers headed to dispo. My 2nd favorite was the M35A1,

deuce and a half; unstoppable.

Editors Comments: In Jan we asked you what is/was

your favorite Air Force vehicle of all time. We discussed a few

other topics internally that we could use for a survey, but

settled on this one for now. Its likely that well do another

survey at some point in the future and would appreciate your

input. So, if theres a non-controversial and fun subject matter

that you think would peak the interest of other members,

please let us know. We thank those who participated in this

survey. Now lets take a look at the results.

1 Mar 2015

5

Continued on PG 6

The Survey Says.

Joseph OConnor

My favorite vehicle from a mechanics viewpoint was the Motor

Coach Industries MC 9 Coach. With a 6V71 Detroit Diesel and

Allison Transmission, it was a dream to work on. A very reliable

vehicle that I escorted on many USAF Academy football games,

both home & away. Always got a safe return!

The photos are of a model that was used for awards

presentations to deserving mechanics, operators and those

outside the transportation realm that were supportive of our

mission.

Tom Pearman Ive said for years the mid-80s Plymouth Reliant was a great

carspecifically as an LE sedan. I know an awful lot of folks will

groan out loud when they read this, but these were tough cars

and they were very serviceable. This is particularly true when

Plymouth fielded the 2.5L throttle body injection engine. I

personally saw the aftermath of an 87 Reliant that had been

driven off a 6-foot loading dock, the sub-frame bent up roughly

10 degrees and the vehicle was then driven around the rest of

the night. I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw it the next

morning. Yep, tough car.

Col (Ret) Dean Smith

That's so easy! It was two deuce and a halves that were

assigned to the Security Police Squadron at Bien Hoa, Vietnam

in 71-72. I still remember the Reg #s and they were 68K 1220

and 68K 1223. We had other ones assigned but these were the

two you could always depend on. Whenever I was chosen to

post folks on the perimeter, in the bomb dump, or on the flight

line I always tried to get one of these two vehicles for that

duty.

Also, when the M-113s (armored personnel carriers) were

broken down we would then use these deuce and a halves for a

13-man Quick Reaction Team (armed w/ a 50 Cal and two

M-60s machine guns (machine gunners also carried .38

handguns), grenade launchers/40mm, hand grenades, M-16s

and white phosphorus flares.

We posted near the perimeter behind an earthen berm and

reacted/posted out when Charlie was sighted or during rocket/

mortar attacks to reinforce the perimeter defense posts. Not

quite the same armor protection provided when posting out in a

M-113 but not bad when you lined the bed with sand bags,

flattened the windshield and put a layer of sandbags on the

hood.

I had other vehicles break down for various reasons during that

year but 1220 and 1223 never failed once. I still remember how

fun it was driving them and got very good at driving in low range

off-road and going through five speeds and switching to high

range and shifting again to go much faster on the perimeter road

(going from five low to three high and up to 5th gear again. I

wish that I had taken pictures of them. The Air Force really got

their money's worth when they bought these two

vehicles! Thanks for the memories you evoked by asking one

simple question!

Continued on PG 7

1 Mar 2015

6

The Survey Says.

Gary McLean

Favorite AF vehicle of all time? Why not the big daddy of crash

fire trucks! My first duty assignment was Andersen AFB, Guam

when it was still a bomber base. One vehicle that held the fate

of a wing commander in its metaphorical hands was the mighty

P-15 crash fire truck due to its criticality to the flying

mission. Fifty percent of the bases crash fire-fighting power in

one truck! Coming out of tech school, I was a C-shred, and lets

face it, MHE is kind of boring; complicated, but boring. I rarely

ever touched a K-loader while assigned there, but I got plenty of

experience working on the fire truck fleet because the shop was

integrated with the Special Purpose shop when I got there.

Regardless of the P-15s nightmarish maintenance issues, it was

the vehicle I felt that truly had all the cool factor rolled up: Two

Silver 92 turbo-supercharged diesels running into a power

divider that made it possible to use both engines for driving so

this 150000 pound GVW beast could hit 50 mph on the flight

line, now thats awesome! Two hydraulic-assist water cannons

with actual gunners controlling them, in the spirit of the amazing

WWII B-17 Flying Fortress. Monster truck sized tires that could

crush a normal sedan-sized vehicle. The ability to knock down

the garage addition at the Little Rock AFB Fire Station by

accidentally clipping the corner of the building (I was stationed

there when it happened, fire dogs!).

The last P-15 I ever worked on was Yokotas beast when we

decommissioned it for air transport to the Air National Guard as

those chunk of junk P-23s came in to replace it. This particular

P-15 at Yokota saved the base from a huge catastrophe in the

POL yard in the 1980s when an equipment failure caused a

nasty JP-4 fire, so we used to call her The Hero of Hachioji,

after the town on the other side of the base fence from the

bazillion gallons of jet fuel housed in tanks just on the Yokota

side of the fence. If that P-15 hadnt gotten to that fire in time,

God only knows how bad that would have been. It killed me to

stow her water cannons for transport on a C-5, but we made

sure we wrote a letter about her heroism to whatever Guard

base received her for reserve duty.

P-15heavyweight champ of the crash fire-fighting world!

Ronnie Ward

Roger, by far my favorite was the old MB4 Coleman,

manufactured in the 60s. If my memory serves me right it had a

flathead 6-cylinder engine with electric shift transmission. The

flight line guys would burn the clutch packs up frequently, but

they were easily replaced and were normally a bench stock item.

Just a fun vehicle to work on. Had the button on the gear shift

knob that you pressed to engage the gears.

Benjamin Dick I would have to say that the old Jeep Bobtail was my favorite,

even though I only worked on it twice. The simplistic design of

using a diesel and a majority of the stock parts of a Jeep just

made it interesting. I always wanted one personally to have for

an off-roader. Its not the prettiest of Jeeps but sure rugged; it

did put up with flight line and ammo troops.

Continued on PG 8

1 Mar 2015

7

The Survey Says.

George McElwain

Thought long and hard about this one and since my wrench

pulling days in the AF, I remember the Hyster 6K we used in Viet

Nam as being tough and easy to work on, and those used at the

flight line aerial ports and supply were dependable. The parts

were also interchangeable with most of the Chevy trucks in the

inventory. We had the oil change interval set at 50 hours of use

and that was usually every 3 or so days as they were used and

abused a lot. I had a service truck set up and we drove to where

they worked, dropped the oil, changed the filter, blew out the air

filter, and gave it a quick grease job while the operator took a

break.

When I arrived at Phu-Cat RVN the MC&A folks said we only

have 3 pieces of equipment assigned, but when they broke

down we would start a AF Form 271 and begin a record. The

count went to 99 before long and it took five of us to keep them

rolling. The vehicles were moved around by aerial ports, so you

never knew where they came from and only saw them when

they broke.

The Army left a bunch of equipment as they moved around and

they ended up in the shop when broken/dead. The MC&A folks

assigned X registration numbers at first and E when the Warner

Robins folks sorted it out.

Seemed like one hell of a way to run a railroad, but we got the

job done and then went home.

Greg Morris

I know there will be many individuals who will select the 1970 or

1971 El Camino SS 396 that used to place the wing tip landing

gear on the U-2 aircraft. I enjoyed taking it for a road test, but it

was not my favorite vehicle.

My favorite vehicle was a 1968 M715 Kaiser Jeep. I was

stationed in Wichita Kansas in 1975 and assigned to the 819th

Red Horse Squadron. They had three of these old trucks or

jeeps as described on the identification plate. I had the

opportunity (nice word for being told) to take 3 of those assets

and make one squadron Show Jeep for the commander

utilizing parts from the other two jeeps.

I stripped it down to bare metal, undercoated, repainted, rebuilt,

and renewed almost every part on the show vehicle including

shaving a few thousands from the head to give it a little more

acceleration. That vehicle was better than new when completed

and it was treat like a Lamborghini from then on. The rebuild

was a major undertaking but the results was fantastic. It was

shiny OD green similar to the picture above with the canvas tarp

and cargo cover. It always started, ran like it was new and

everyone wanted to drive it to squadron functions. It turned out

to be a huge morale booster for the squadron. I loved that old

truck.

Glenda Ferrara

A clean one!

Continued on PG 9

Editors Note: This Hyster 6K forklift is obviously a much later version than the one Chief (Ret) McElwain is describing. I wasnt able to find a picture of one from the Vietnam era. However, its still a dependable work vehicle today.

Editors Note: This answer wins the prize for shortest reply. No pic necessary here.

1 Mar 2015

8

The Survey Says.

Mark Hiles

80B00103. An OD Green 1980 GMC Astro with a Detroit Diesel

under the cab. I put thousands of miles on that tractor between

87 and 89 hauling about anything you could think of across the

Korean Peninsula. Most wouldnt drive it because when you hit

8th and threw it in overdrive, you had to pull back on the gear

shift to keep it from flying into neutral. Even had the misfortune

of spending a couple nights along the road sleeping in it. Once

south of Taejon heading to Taegu and the second time running

between Pusan and Kwangju. Both times were trailer and tire

issues and not the truck. Those old cab-over Astros would take

a beating; and also delivered a beating to the driver and

passenger as well.

Michael Campbell

The P-19 fire truck. For every electric or air-controlled actuator

there was a manual backup. Often times the fire department did

not like the manual backup because they trained to use the truck

in normal mode. Preventive maintenance was simple and easy

and the bigger tasks were well thought out by Oshkosh for the

technician. I can imagine no simpler and well-designed vehicle

in the fleet. If you ask firemen today what fire truck they would

want, most say the P-19 with a majority of those specifically

wanting the B model. Incidentally, the green fire truck attached

is Oshkosh's P-19R built by Oshkosh for the Marine Corps. Fire

fighters are already salivating over this new shiny thing.

Udo Koenig

My favorite vehicle to work on as a refueling vehicle mechanic

was the 1982 Kovatch Model K-500, Mack truck chassis R-9,

5000 gallon, refueling truck. If I remember right, it was the first

generation R-9 with a Kovatch dispensing system. The previous

year 1981 models were a Mack truck chassis with a dispensing

system manufactured by Consolidated Diesel Electric. That one

by far was my least favorite to work on, and was the crossover

hybrid for the 1981 model year.

There's a good story that goes with it from my former SSgt days,

but for another time. Working on this vehicle left nothing but

positive memories and impressions on me. I even remember

some of the registration numbers I worked on. Incidentally, the

truck had a highly desirable bulldog on the hood that

disappeared frequently.

Col (Ret) Bob King

My all-time favorite vehicle was the Ramp Tramp truck I drove at

Aerial Ports in DE, SC, GA, and Guam. I met every in-coming

aircraft on my shift, checked configuration of every out-going

aircraft, hauled cargo and passengers, delivered meals, ran

special handling cargo to aircraft, carried manifests to the

aircraft, and often served as crew transport. Of all the jobs I had

in my career, running the ramp in a beat up old pick-up truck

was the most fun ever. Staircase trucks run a close second...fun

to drive, difficult to line up with various aircraft, and usually the

last to leave aircraft prior to departure (no pressure there).

Continued on PG 10

1 Mar 2015

9

The Survey Says.

Richard Bunce

I have two for you.

The first is the M915A2.

Its not an Air Force asset but they did have a few non-armored

versions at Bullis. The reason I include it is the sheer volume of

freight that our Airmen moved with these things. Matt Wickham

has the final numbers but its an amount of cargo that is really

hard to get your head around. My detachment lost A1C Eric

Barnes to an IED in one of these on 10 June 2007. Eric was

one too many to lose his life. But so many more survived some

truly massive attacks due to the armor, and the reliability that I

directly give credit to our maintainers (who were all Airmen as

well). I had photos of many rigs that survived. Some with the

entire front end blown off and most of the wheels and tires but

they kept rolling.

I can only speak for my experience but during our tour which

was at the height of the insurgency, we did not suffer a

mechanical breakdown on the MSR. Thats quite a

statement. Again, losing Eric was a loss that I wouldnt wish on

anyone. It was a horrible experience but to address what youre

looking for on this article, these ugly Army Freightliners that

were fully maintained and operated by our AIRMEN, deserve

some honorable mention. I believe that Mike Lindeman is trying

to get the one they brought back from the AOR a place of dignity

for all to remember the sacrifices our Airmen made during a

historic era of Air Force Transportation history.

Ive also included my favorite peacetime rigthe 79/80 GMC

Astros. All of us old timers will remember them. Some with a

grin, many probably not so much! But they were a hoot to drive,

especially with the 2-stroke Detroit and the 13 speed and pretty

reliable.

I drove them all over Korea and the west coast of the USA and

as a young operator, loved it. Some also had Cummins power

with a 10 speed road ranger. Theyd out pull the Detroits uphill

but the ole Jimmys would take them down the flats. Fun days in

those things and again, theyve moved a hell of a lot of freight all

over the world. On the attached photo, Im hauling a grader

from Colorado Springs to who the hell knows with the Astro in

which I learned how to drive tractor trailers. The date on the

back of the photo is Feb 1984.

Roger Storman

My favorite AF vehicle, hands down, is the 1966-1968, GMC/

CONDEC, R-5 refuelers perhaps not surprising coming from

an old B-shred with JP-4 in his veins. It had its problems, but the

vehicle was a workhorse. It was equipped with a 478M V-6

gasoline engine and an Allison AT 540 transmission. The PTO

was manually operated by cable, which could be a pain to

install. It had a front-mounted muffler with an internal spark

arrestor that required periodic draining. It also had a shielded

ignition system, so we had to do spark checks at night, always a

dreaded duty for the standby guy.

So, why did I like it so much? I guess its because I grew up with

it and became familiar with its idiosyncrasies. It was also a tough

trucknothing fancy. I was deployed to Takhli, Thailand in 1972

during the Easter Offensive in Vietnam. We reopened the base.

PACAF shipped R-5s from all over the command, mostly the

worst ones. I had no parts, so I parked the dog of the fleet and

it became my parts source. We kept em flying.

Continued on PG 11

1 Mar 2015

10

The Survey Says.

Reade Holzbaur

The Dodge Power Wagon is a four wheel drive light truck

produced from 1945 through 1980. It was the only AF truck with

an engine that couldnt be killed by vehicle operators, not even

security police! Now, wrapped around telephone poles, wind

damaged doors, blowing out the jack shaft, burned up clutch

assembly, dead batteries and an occasional alternator, yes, but

the engineno way. Powered by a Chrysler slant-6, the

engine that would run no matter what name I called it.

This vehicle was geared so low it could virtually climb

walls. Looking back, I can probably count on one hand the

number of slant-6 engines in our entire fleet that we had to

replace, and we had Dodges up the wazoo back then.

The first light-duty Power Wagons came out in 1957 with the

introduction of the W100 and W200 pickups (beginning in

1957, 12-ton 2WDs were D100s and 4WDs were W100s).

The Dodge Power Wagon was introduced in 1946. It was

originally meant to compete with Ford/Marmon-Herrington 44

military trucks such as the brush-breaker, as well as military

GMC truck applications. It was based on the 3/4-ton army truck

chassis with a civilian cab and a purpose designed 8-foot cargo

box.

In 1961 the 230 was replaced with the 251 cubic-inch flat head

six. The nominal one-ton rated Power Wagon's GVWR was

8,700 pounds. Its maximum payload was 3,000 pounds.

Big-block 383 V8 engines became an option starting in 1967;

we only had a few of these. From 1961 to 1971 the body was

called the Sweptline and then transitioned to a more modern

body image from 1972 through 1980 with varied grilles and paint

schemes (Air Force blue).

In 1975 the 4-wheel drive became full-time with a 2-speed

transfer case; this was changed back to part-time 4-wheel drive

in 1980 due to the energy crisis. (who remembers that?) The

4-door Crew Cab was far less common (but we seemed to get

them) and is quite desirable to collectors for restoration, and we

had plenty.

The Power Wagon was sold through the 1980 model year. A

number of engineering and styling improvements were made

over the years, but the basic package remained surprisingly

constant throughout its life and underwent one last major body

change in 1972.

I remember that when you put that PTO in low and locked those

front hubs, this vehicle was ready to work. That 251CID was a

work horse! One issue, if you want to call it that, was the ignition

ballast resistor would burn out, hence a no-start condition, but

this was a Chrysler problem across all their vehicles.

They were sort of a mortality item for some reason if you want to

call it that. Best part was you didnt even have to get dirty

changing one out. I used to do a tune-up on these by removing

the distributor plate, slapping in a new set of points and

condenser, put the plate back in, adjust point gap to .017 and

she was ready to fire. Most guys would mess around trying to

do this with the plate in the distributor which was on an angle. I

can still hear the cussing when theyd drop the screw or

nut. Another thing that some mechanics didnt know was that

the jackshaft had to be in plane. Failure to do so after a clutch

job resulted in a vibration that made you think the tranny went

bad.

Overall we got our money out of these vehicles and they are

highly sought after by collectors now. To me, they will always

remain the one vehicle with the only engine that couldnt be

killed.

Dan Berlenbach

I have two favorites; cant really decide. Both are from an

operators perspective and from my time in Red Horse. Favorite

number one is the 1968/69, 10-ton Mack dump truck/tractor.

Continued on PG 12

1 Mar 2015

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The Survey Says.

(Continued from PG 11)

Dan Berlenbach

I operated and worked on these at the 554th at Osan in 76/77

and also at the 823rd and 819th RH squadrons in the late 70s

and early 80s. These trucks were unique in their 6X6 design,

required double-clutching and were a hoot to drive, especially for

a young airman. Our trucks at Osan had come from RH in

Vietnam and were not in the best of shape.

The Macks were more of an off-road design, so highway miles

were tough on the truck and the driver. I did a number of convoy

and long-distance trips with them in spite of their design though

and loved every mile. I also was part of a civic action project

(off-base Osan) where we hauled sand out of a riverbed and did

not get close to getting stuck. By the way, changing the clutch in

that truck was a bit$%; the transmission and transfer case were

a bolted-together unit (2300 lbs) and stabbing the tranny back

on after replacing the clutch, plates, and pressure plate was a

challenge to say the least.

Favorite number two is the M-543 five-ton wrecker. I was

fortunate to use the 554ths M-543 a number of times, including

an unforgettable trip to DRMO in Seoul, hauling an old Mack

where the wreckers front end was so light on the ground it took

5 lanes to make a turn. I believe the 554th truck was a late-60s

model, and still had the gas engine in it at the time.

I also got to operate the M-543s replacement in the 80s, the

M-816. That was my daily driver in fact, on a long deployment. I

loved the versatility of both wreckers, whether you were doing

vehicle retrieval, changing an engine, or minor constructionthe

hydraulic boom was easy to use and control and would do

almost anything. A fine piece of equipment!

Dennis J. Lami, Col (Ret) In 1982 USAFE started procuring armored vehicles to protect

our leadership in Europe. Pictured is an actual armored vehicle

similar to those which were in our inventory. Hands down this is

my favorite Air Force vehicle.

A close second was the Unimog. It was the most versatile of any

Air Force vehicle.

Editors Note: Farm family puts a Unimog and other military

vehicles to good use through Government Liquidation. This

video demonstrates the Unimogs versatility that Col Lami

mentioned above. If youve never seen one, watch this.

1 Mar 2015

12

Zubie: This Car Safety Tool 'Could Have Given Hackers Control of Your Vehicle'

by Thomas Fox-Brewster Forbes Staff

Contributor: Randy Livermore, CMSgt (Ret/2T3)

Over the last year, researchers have been guessing at ways

hackers might compromise cars from afar. Now, alumni of

Israels cyber intelligence division, Unit 8200, have discovered

that an innocuous American in-vehicle technology could have

been exploited to remotely mess with the brakes, steering and

engine.

Its the first example of such a cyber-attack on a specific in-car

dongle. And it may prove to be a watershed moment in the

history of vehicular security.

Ironically, the vulnerability lay in a safety-enhancing technology

known as Zubie, which tracks cars performance and location to

offer suggestions for more efficient, responsible driving. Zubie

CEO Tim Kelly says the issue has now been fixed.

But the findings will do nothing to assuage fears of remote

hacking of vehicles via such technologies.

Zubie consists of a number of parts. First, theres the hardware,

which plugs into the On-Board Diagnostic (OBD2) port of a car,

found underneath the steering wheel.

This device communicates with the internal network of the

vehicle. It also has a mobile GPRS modem that connects it to

the Zubie cloud, which then feeds information to an Android and

iOS compatible app.

Having hacked away at the hardware, Ofer Ben-Noon and his

research team at start-up Argus Cyber Security managed to

uncover a critical weakness, which lay in the devices ability to

download updates from a remote server.

The Zubie device was not using encrypted communications,

using standard HTTP to communicate with the server, meaning

its identity wasnt being verified. The updates werent signed

either. A hacker who managed to take over the server or its

domain name would be able to send malicious updates to the

device.

The latter attack would likely be simpler a hacker could set up

a fake mobile base station in a car park and then spoof a Zubie

server. This is the kind of exploit Argus researchers were able to

perform, for real.

They used a malicious server to implant malware on the Zubie

device. As the OBD2 port provides direct access, through the

CAN (controller area network) bus, to all other systems in the

vehicle, the potential for serious damage was high. The

researchers were able to unlock the doors and manipulate the

dials on the dash on an unnamed vehicle, Argus claimed in

its blog post.

Ben-Noon told me the team could have spent more time

researching the computing languages for other functions in the

car to control the brakes, steering or even the engine, but felt

they had made their point.

Argus malware could also track the vehicles location, driving

behaviours and siphon off all this data. This clearly violates

passengers privacy, the company wrote in its blog.

Ben-Noon wont reveal which car his team hacked, saying he

didnt want to draw attention away from the core message here:

the automotive industry needs to pay attention to cyber safety.

When will the industry adopt cyber defences? We believe that

were starting to see more of these events that will force them to

accept what they are not currently willing to accept.

Having cyber systems in a vehicle is a money maker you save

money on brand damage that might occur in the future, he told

Forbes. It will take time for the automotive industry to

understand what enterprises already understand.

Car connectivity is a must moving into the future but has to be

done in a secure manner. [Tech manufacturers] have to be

responsible for their components.

The Tel-Aviv firm worked closely with Zubie to get the problem

fixed, having originally contacted the firm nearly two months

ago. Security and the safety of our customers are top priority at

Zubie.

Zubie Device

Continued On PG 14

Editors Note: This article uses British spelling for some words.

1 Mar 2015

13

Argus recently notified us of a security issue in our device

software and we worked quickly to fix it. We have no evidence

that any customers vehicles were compromised.

Zubie has gone through system-wide security testing, with

the NCC Group, accredited automotive security experts and

third-party insurance carriers, to protect the safety of both our

customers and products. We appreciate Argus help in

disclosing this vulnerability in a responsible manner to help us

improve our overall security posture, said Zubie CEO Kelly, in a

statement emailed to Forbes.

Argus hasnt been able to test the updated version of the vehicle

diagnostics technology, but said Zubie had acted swiftly and

responsibly.

Chris Valasek, IOActives car hacker extraordinaire, told me that

compromising a device connected to the OBD2 port would

provide access to all car functions. But the attacker would have

to learn all the protocols and languages used by the related car

to tinker with its different functions, Valasek noted.

These differ between models too, so having access to the car

would be a necessity, in order to reverse engineer its

communications before initiating an attack.

Despite these barriers to a successful hack, anyone with the

right resources could compromise a range of vehicles having

first uncovered a vulnerability for a device plugged into the

OBD2 port. That port has been in almost every car made since

1996, says Ben-Noon.

When Valasek and co-researcher Charlie Miller hacked into a

car with former Forbes reporter Andy Greenberg at the wheel, it

was through the OBD-II port. Valasek and Miller are now

exploring ways to remotely hack an automobile without the need

for third-party devices plugged into OBD2.

Earlier this year, a company called Visual Threat said it had

probed 19 OBD dongles and more than 120 auto mobile apps.

It claimed 50 per cent of surveyed OBD dongles, which it didnt

name, were vulnerable. And it said it was able to exploit the

dongles to hijack a Hyundai Sonata and a Toyota Camry,

opening the trunk and doors, switching on the lights, tooting the

horn, and even killing the engine remotely.

Such OBD2 connected hardware is now commonplace, what

with the rise of services like Zubie and the usage-based

insurance industry, where devices record the time and distance

covered, driving behaviour and location of cars to determine the

cost of motor insurance. ABI Research recently predicted the

number of subscribers to OBD-related products will reach 117.8

million by 2019.

Any remote update system attached to the CANBus (or OBD

port) is an excellent attack vector, said Craig Smith, founder of

vehicle research lab OpenGarages, author of the Car Hackers

Owners Manual and contributor to public cyber safety

organisation I Am The Cavalry.

Zubie itself has been getting a lot of interest from investors,

having secured an $8 million funding round in August this year,

including backing from Nokia Growth Partners. It had already

enjoyed a $10 million Series A round. Its technology is designed

to provide feedback to the driver, suggesting when they should

get their car serviced or how they could drive more efficiently

and safely.

In September, the start-up announced it was entering the

insurance game via a partnership with Progressive Insurance.

Zubie and its competitors would do well to ensure their security

is up to snuff, for the good of their own futures and the safety of

drivers everywhere.

The Argus Cyber Security Team

YouTube Video

1 Mar 2015

14

Jan & Dean.Eat Your Hearts Out!

Where have all the woodies gone?

Contributor: George McElwain, CMSgt (Ret/472)

Nick Alexander owned all of them. He is a BMW dealer in Los

Angeles and had been working on his collection for nearly 12

years. These cars were auctioned in 2009. Can you imagine

the dollar value of these oldies?

Also, see website at the bottom of the page right side.

Editors Comments: Cowabunga, dude! This one really hit home with me. As a teenager growing up on the east coast of Florida, I spent a lot of my free time surfing small waves at Cocoa Beach.

The opening line to the song Surf City is, Ive got a 34 wagon and they call it a woody. Thanks to 60s bands like Jan & Dean and the Beach Boys, woodies will be forever connected to surfing.

I always thought it would be cool to own one, but never did. This collection is exceptional. Enjoy the photos.

See more at: http://www.hemmings.com/hcc/stories/2009/04/01/

hmn_feature12.html

1 Mar 2015

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