What's flying in the sky near Fort Liberty?

Rachael Riley, The Fayetteville Observer
Updated ·3 min read
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FORT LIBERTY — While the 2006 Base Realignment and Closure Act led to the departure of many Air Force aircraft from Pope Air Force Base, the need has not left Fort Liberty.

A $45 million aerial gunnery range for training opened in 2019 at Fort Liberty, and about $65 million in runway and taxiway renovations at Pope Army Airfield was made in 2021.

Most of the aircraft used to transport Fort Liberty’s paratroopers come from Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, and some of the local tenant units also have rotary aircraft.

Here’s a look at what’s flying in the skies around Fort Liberty.

More: Soldiers use new $45M aerial gunnery range for training

Planes used for jumps

Home of the airborne, paratroopers are constantly training to jump out of what they call “perfectly good aircraft.”

Among the most common are the C-130 Hercules and C-17 Globemaster III.

Soldiers with the 82nd Airborne Division head out to board a C-17 cargo plane at Pope Army Airfield for a deployment to Eastern Europe on Feb. 3, 2022.
Soldiers with the 82nd Airborne Division head out to board a C-17 cargo plane at Pope Army Airfield for a deployment to Eastern Europe on Feb. 3, 2022.
Two Paratroopers assigned to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division conduct security while a C-130 Hercules takes off during a non-combatant evacuation operation Aug. 25, 2021, in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Two Paratroopers assigned to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division conduct security while a C-130 Hercules takes off during a non-combatant evacuation operation Aug. 25, 2021, in Kabul, Afghanistan.

The four-engine Lockheed C-130 Hercules is commonly used for jumps and airborne assaults, search and rescue and tactical operations.

It can use unprepared runways for takeoff and landing.

The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is used to carry troops and equipment around the world for airlift and airdrop missions and is used by airborne qualified soldiers for jumps.

The C-17 is powered by four turbofan engines and can take off on short runways.

Rotary aircraft

At Simmons Army Airfield, the 3rd Battalion, 58th Aviation Regiment provides air traffic services and airfield management, while working with units like the 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade, U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command and USASOC Flight Company.

According to the flight company’s website, it uses two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters and CASA 212 aircraft to support the John F. Kenney Special Warfare Center and School and USASOC.

Paratroopers participate in an airborne jump from UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters into Sicily Drop Zone at Fort Bragg, on Apr. 28, 2022.
Paratroopers participate in an airborne jump from UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters into Sicily Drop Zone at Fort Bragg, on Apr. 28, 2022.

According to the Army, there are several variations of the UH-60 Black Hawk, which is a “tactical transport helicopter” used for “air assault, general support, aeromedical evacuation, command and control, and special operations support.”

The CASA 212 is “an all-metal, high wing, multipurpose light transport aircraft with short takeoff and landing capabilities” used to transport equipment and personnel and is also used for medical evacuations, geophysical surveys and airborne operations.

A soldier from the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School jumps from the tailgate of a Casa 212 aircraft over Sicily Drop Zone at Fort Bragg, on Dec. 1, 2022.
A soldier from the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School jumps from the tailgate of a Casa 212 aircraft over Sicily Drop Zone at Fort Bragg, on Dec. 1, 2022.

More: Why development could ground multi-million dollar Fort Bragg investment

The 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade also uses AH-64E Apache helicopters, UH-60 Black Hawks and C-47 Chinooks.

The brigade received the AH-64E Apaches in 2019 to replace the Delta Apache helicopter. It is designed to increase “reliability and lethality” during large-scale combat operations.

The 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade receives Echo Model AH-64 Apache, in August 2019 at Fort Bragg.
The 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade receives Echo Model AH-64 Apache, in August 2019 at Fort Bragg.

According to the Army, the twin-engine, four-blade AH-64E is an attack helicopter that can destroy targets at almost 5 miles away and is used for “armed reconnaissance, close combat, mobile strike, and vertical maneuver missions.”

The Chinook, according to the Army, “is the Army's only heavy-lift cargo helicopter,” that can carry up to 33 soldiers and three crew members, and has a 26,000 sling-load capacity with a center hook.

The helicopter is used for “disaster relief, homeland defense and security, and current overseas contingency operations.”

Staff writer Rachael Riley can be reached at rriley@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3528.

Two CH-47 Chinook helicopter’s assigned to 3rd General Support Aviation Battalion, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division perform tactical maneuvers to place two M777A2 Howitzers in position for onlookers during the 2017 All American Week Airborne Review on Sicily Drop Zone at Fort Bragg.
Two CH-47 Chinook helicopter’s assigned to 3rd General Support Aviation Battalion, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division perform tactical maneuvers to place two M777A2 Howitzers in position for onlookers during the 2017 All American Week Airborne Review on Sicily Drop Zone at Fort Bragg.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Planes and rotary aircraft to spot around Fort Liberty