2. Background
Approximately late April of 2014, the
fuel platoon from Alpha Company, 46th
ASB took authority of the fuel and ammo
mission within Regional Command-
South (RC-S), providing customer
support for over 113 aircraft. Within the
scope of that mission was the support of
a four-point forward arming and
refueling point (FARP) contracted to
civilian employees from JimCo Int., and
the cold refuel of all aircraft and
equipment located at Mustang Ramp on
Kandahar Airfield (KAF), Afghanistan.
These two fuel missions combined
required 24 hour operations and issued
approximately 450,000 gallons of JP-8
each month.
Prior to the ASB’s arrival, a Tactical
Airfield Fuel Delivery System (TAFDS)
was built to deliver fuel to the FARP
through an underground pipeline. The
pipeline was driven by a 400 gpm pump
and operated remotely by fuel personnel
at the fuel pads. One Fuel System
Supply Point (FSSP) supported both
cold and hot refuel missions, and
consisted of two 50,000 gallon bags.
Eventually the system began to have
pressure issues at the pads furthest
from the pump and was deemed
unserviceable after a rodent chewed
through the wiring in the main electrical
control panel.
TAFDS’ Resolution
To maintain refuel capabilities, four
Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck
(HEMTT) M978A4 fuel trucks,
containing up to 2,400 gallons each,
were emplaced on the hot refuel points.
When one of the four refuel points fell
below the on-hand amount of 1,000
gallons, it was resupplied by a cold fuel
HEMTT. In order to refuel a hot pad
HEMTT, Soldiers were required to drive
a fuel truck to the FSSP and use a
standalone 600 gpm pump to pull fuel
from the 50,000 gallon bags. That fuel
3. was delivered to a hot refuel pad
HEMTT through the truck’s internal
pump. That same delivery HEMTT
would then return to the FSSP to top off
its own tank in order to be on standby
for any cold refuel missions. This
process of refueling the FARP and then
topping off the cold fuel truck took
approximately two hours.
46th ASB Renovations
The aforementioned procedure for
fuel support was time consuming and
degraded customer support for the ASB
cold fuel operation. It also dramatically
increased the amount of operational
hours required of the HEMTT internal
fuel pumps, creating more maintenance
hours. Shortly after transfer of
authority, it was determined that the
pipeline was still serviceable although
the original pump was not.
The 600 gpm pump was relocated to the
berm between the two 50K fuel bags
and then attached to the already
established pipeline.
Quality testing of the residual fuel left in
the original system showed the JP-8
was still aviation quality and allowed the
platoon to continue moving towards a
more sustainable operation.
Once the external pump and pipeline
were proven as a concept, each pad’s
receiving capabilities had to be tested
for serviceability and checked for leaks.
The original system allowed all refuel
operations to be operated remotely from
each refuel pad as necessary. An
electrical control box would turn the
pump at the FSSP on and then
dispense fuel. Fortunately, the external
pump did not need the electrical system
to be operational, but it did require one
person to start the pump and observe it
during refuel operations. This allowed
the pipeline to be utilized in lieu of the
unserviceable electrical system, but did
increase the manning requirement. To
ensure no leaks developed while the
civilian pumps were shut down, each
pad was tested individually by
pressuring the pipeline with new fuel
and allowing each pad to be turned on
separately. Each pad was hooked to a
4. HEMTT fuel truck one at a time to
simulate aircraft refuel and was
operated for two minutes. The meters
connected to each pad allowed a
gallons-per-minute reading to be
assessed as well. At the end of testing,
it was determined that all 4 hot refuel
points were serviceable and produced at
least 55 gallons per minute at the
furthest point from the external 600 gpm
pump.
The fuel platoon created a refuel
system that saved the ASB and the
Army from spending an exorbitant
amount of time, money, and resources
on repairing the civilian contracted
electrical pump that was inoperable
upon arrival; however, there were still
issues with the new setup. It still did not
allow relief of the existent four M978A4
fuel trucks and the external 600 gpm
pump could not reliably run 24 hours.
When a pad truck needed to be
refueled, an individual was required to
stay at the FSSP and monitor pump
operations until refuel was completed.
This process of refueling FARP trucks
took approximately 15 to 20 minutes.
Although the pipeline was only utilized
to refill pad HEMTTs at the hot FARP, it
enabled the FARP to become self-
sustaining. No longer would Soldiers
tasked to the cold fuel mission need to
spend a large portion of their shift
resupplying pad trucks. This change
dramatically decreased response times
for cold fuel requests, allowing
maintenance processes to flow
smoothly and shortening the amount of
time crew chiefs spent waiting to finish
their checks and shutdown their aircraft.
Furthermore, it saved thousands of
hours in internal HEMTT pump
operations.
Currently, all advancements have
been made that are within the sphere of
influence of the fuel and water platoon.
The original pipeline and pump system
has been considered for repair, but it is
not on a unit density list and the cost
analysis is still in deliberation. The initial
steps have been taken. The rodent
problem has been resolved and the
respective entities have all the
necessary information to make an
educated decision.
