FORT SILL, Okla. (Jan. 24, 2014) -- Imagine getting to touch an airplane that was part of World War II (WWII) history. Now imagine donning a WW II Army uniform and parachute, and getting on that airplane to make your first jump.
And, by the way, that plane is almost 72 years old.
That scenario was not imaginary for the students at the WWII Airborne Demonstration Team (ADT) jump school at Frederick, Okla., last week. Students came from all over the U.S. and several foreign countries to learn how to successfully make five static line jumps out of a C-47 Skytrain troop transport. Affectionately named "Boogie Baby," the C-47 was built at the Douglas aircraft plant at Tinker Air Base, Midwest City, Okla., in November 1942.
"For this school we had 18 students, 12 of whom are "newbies" who had no prior airborne experience," said Sharon Bennett, public affairs officer for the ADT. "We have three tiers of experience. Tier 1 is for students with no prior airborne experience. They have to complete five jumps to qualify. Tier 2 is for students with prior military personnel who had airborne experience and were jump qualified. They only have to complete two jumps. Tier 3 is for active-duty military with prior airborne experience and they have to make two jumps also.
"There are several Fort Sill Soldiers training in the current school. We have an accelerated track for them whereby we do some of their practical training at Fort Sill. They come out here and do two jumps to qualify to get the ADT wings and become part of our team," Bennett said.
Second Lts. Kelsey Fincher and Zachary Ferry are going through the Field Artillery Basic Officer Leader Course at Fort Sill. Both previously completed airborne school at Fort Benning, but were doing the ADT jump school because they wanted to.
"The first thing I noticed when we got in the C-47 was that it is a lot less noisy than the C-17s or C-130s that we use. That was a huge benefit. Another thing is the size of the plane. It's a lot smaller than the ones we use. Having only 14 people on board, rather than 40, is a lot different," said Ferry, who is from Pullman, Wash., and serves with 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment.
Fincher said that jumping out of "Boogie Baby" was much smoother than current aircraft. "They told us the prop wash of a C-47 is actually coming underneath you, whereas the prop wash of a C-17 is above you. So exiting the C-47 is a lot smoother." said Fincher, from Statesboro, Ga. "I only need one more jump to get my wings from the ADT and I am definitely ready to go."
Ferry added that he is in awe of the history of the plane and the organization.
"I'm a big student of military history and World War II. When I am in this aircraft, I can't help but think of the images I have seen in movies like "Band of Brothers" and "Saving Private Ryan," with all of the C-47s flying through," Ferry said. "It is amazing to think that this airplane is almost 72 years old. To jump out of a flying machine that is that old and flew in combat is amazing. This shows you the love that the members of the ADT have for what they do and the airplane that they fly."
The ADT has some 200 members from all over the world. They come to work at the jump schools twice a year and also attend demonstration jumps the team puts on throughout the United States and Europe. And they do it all at their own expense and receive no pay.
Retired Spc. Peter Hernandez, a combat medic with the 4th Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division, found out about the jump school in Frederick and said he just had to come and check it out.
"I was certified with the ADT last summer and I love the friendship and fellowship out here. You want to keep remembering and serving," said Hernandez, who lives in Amarillo, Texas, drove over to help during the jump school.
"I help out in the rigging loft, shaking out the parachutes. I'm not trained in rigging the parachutes but I can clean them out. I do whatever I can to help speed up the jump cycles."
Retired Col. Raymond Steeley, Special Forces Reserve, serves as commander and chairman of the WWII ADT. "The Airborne Demonstration Team re-members, honors and serves World War II veterans. The mission has migrated just a little bit as we are losing our World War II veterans, and we have now started to reach out to our Korean and Vietnam veterans who were assigned to airborne organizations and made combat jumps.
"They have given so much and we want to remember, honor and serve those veterans. A number of our ADT members served in airborne units and jumped into battle during World War II. It is such an incredible honor and pleasure to sit down and talk with those old Soldiers, and to hear the selfless service that those guys experienced back then," he said.
"We have an open membership and anyone who wants to join can do so. We are a 100-percent, nonprofit organization. If someone doesn't want to be a paratrooper, they can join our ground or air crews that operate the planes.
"We are the only organization in the world that does what we do. We do demonstration jumps with World War II-era planes," Steeley said.
He added the outfit has a vintage hangar and vehicles, WWII veterans, a mess hall, maintenance facilities, rigger shop and certified aircraft mechanics and crews.
For more information on the ADT, go to www.wwiiadt.org
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