The Hercules and the Beemer, a Military Misconduct Mystery

[EssExTee]

Buckle up, this one's got stuff for everyone: The avgeeks, the military aficionados, and the Two Wheels Good crowd.

This past Friday a C-130 Hercules touched down at our municipal airport. That itself is not unusual as Otis Air National Guard Base is nearby. Between pilots practicing touch n' gos and the occasional presidential visit, military planes are not an uncommon sight in our skies.

What was unusual, however, was what transpired upon landing. Witnesses at the nearby Plane View restaurant, a cafe overlooking the runway and parking area, report the Hercules lowering its cargo ramp. Military personnel rushed out and quickly loaded up a motorcycle that was waiting on the tarmac, then packed up the plane and took off again. The whole landing, loading, and departure took about fifteen minutes.

One witness reports: “I saw a vintage BMW motorcycle. I used to own old vintage BMW motorcycles, so that’s how I know. I was eating next to the window. We looked out and we saw the plane. We saw people walking a vintage motorcycle up to the plane.”

The local paper reached out to the ANG about this event. Spokesman Sgt. Alfred Tripolone responded via email, saying this was absolutely not an ANG plane or mission. So where did this plane come from, and who was operating it?

The smoking gun was "Hurricane Hunters" lettering that eyewitnesses reported on the tail of the aircraft. This identifies the plane as part of the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, based out of Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi. The 53rd is a unique unit that collects valuable weather data for the NOAA by, you guessed it, flying specially equipped planes into hurricanes and other atmospheric phenomena.

The USAFR confirmed the occurrence, responding via email. “While performing an off-station training mission, a U.S. Air Force Reserve crew with the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, 403rd Wing, Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi, made an unplanned stop at Martha’s Vineyard Airport, Massachusetts, March 24,” Lt. Col. Marnee Losurdo writes. “Leadership is aware of the incident, which is under investigation.”

Most of this information has been investigated and sourced by the local paper, however a few other military-focused outlets have since picked up the story.

[WasGTIthenGTOthenNOVAthenGTInowA4]

Oops. Poor guy just wanted to pick up his bike without paying a big shipping bill.

[Krusty Walnut]

@EssExTee Does Obama ride motorcycles?

[derp]

i wonder if it was a space a move that was coordinated within the wing. you could totally justify a landing at an unfamiliar field, takeoff, and a rapid cargo load with training value.

[EssExTee]

@krustywantout Buddy the Secret Service wouldn't even let him drive a car

[facw]

@EssExTee Probably for the best to keep them off the motorcycles. W managed to do this to himself just on a bicycle:

[drVanTraveler]

@EssExTee I think shipping a motorcycle is going to look like a bargain after they finish crucifying the 130 crew.

[CruzeHatch]

@EssExTee is Otis still open? I thought they shut it down a while back. A friend of mine (RIP) used to do his service time there. Back pre-9/11 he had me and a friend of mine come downa nd tour the base - it was awesome

[ranwhenparked]

@WasGTIthenGTOthenNOVAthenGTInowA4 it's just one motorcycle, what could it possibly cost to ship? $5,000?

[facw]

@CruzeHatch They planned on closing it in the mid-2000s but ultimately just got rid of fighter squadron. So while I think there aren't military aircraft permanently stationed there (beyond the Coast Guard), it's still an active base.