AN SMA; OPERATING LEGALLY; GOT CAUGHT IN A MIL SECURITY SIT.

Narrative

AFTER LNDG AT THE CHEYENNE ARPT RWY 26; THE PLT OF A CESSNA 182 REQUESTED A VOR CHK AND WAS DIRECTED TO PROCEED TO THE VOR CHK POINT LOCATED ON TXWY C JUST S OF THE INTXN WITH TXWY F. THE FLT; WHICH WAS AN IFR TRAINING FLT UNDER VFR RULES; WITH ANOTHER PLT B ACTING AS A SAFETY PLT; AND 1 PAX; WAS CLRED TO THE VOR CHK POINT; AND PROCEEDED TO TURN ON TO TXWY C AFTER EXITING THE RWY. THE PRESENCE OF A C141 STARLIFTER WAS NOTED LOCATED FURTHER N ON TXWY C; ALONG WITH NUMEROUS PERSONNEL SURROUNDING IT; AND A FLATBED TRAILER/SEMI TRUCK COMBINATION PARKED BEHIND THE AFT LOADING RAMP. AFTER PROCEEDING A SHORT WAY; THE SAFETY PLT B DREW TO THE ATTN OF THE PLT THE PERSONNEL SURROUNDING THE C141 HAD BEGUN TO MOVE AND APPEARED TO BE STARTING TO WATCH THEM INTENTLY. AT THE SAME TIME; CALLS FROM THE TWR ON THE GND FREQ OF 121.9 WERE HEARD TO 'SECURITY' WITH NO REPLY. NUMEROUS REPETITIONS OF THE CALL WERE MADE OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MINS WITHOUT RESPONSE; WHILE AT THE SAME TIME THE PERSONNEL SURROUNDING THE C141 HAD BEGUN TO TRAIN SMALL ARMS WEAPONS ON THE CESSNA 182. HAVING REACHED THE VOR CHK; THE ACFT WAS ALIGNED AND BEING CHKED WHEN PERSONNEL SURROUNDING THE C141 BEGAN WITHDRAWING BEHIND THEIR VEHICLES AND SIGHTING CAREFULLY AT THE CESSNA AND ITS OCCUPANTS. NO CONTACT HAD BEEN HEARD AND CONTINUED CALLS FROM THE TWR WERE HEARD TRYING TO RAISE SECURITY WITH MORE URGENCY. AFTER SEVERAL MINS; A ONE SIDED CONVERSATION DUE TO THE SECURITY PERSONNEL USING ANOTHER FREQ; WAS HEARD; WITH TWR NOTIFYING THE SECURITY PERSONNEL OF THE REASON FOR THE CESSNA AND THE LOCATION OF THE VOR CHK POINT. IT WAS THEN OBSERVED THAT ONE OF THE SECURITY PERSONNEL SIGNALED OTHERS BY RADIO AND VISUALLY OF THE CONVERSATIONS WHICH HAD JUST OCCURRED WITH THE TWR PERSONNEL. NO OBSERVANCE WAS MADE UNTIL LATER OF THE LOWERING OF WEAPONS. UPON COMPLETION OF THE VOR CHK; THE CESSNA AND ITS OCCUPANTS REVERSED THEIR DIRECTION TO SBOUND ON TXWY C AND TAXIED TO THE FBO LOCATED ON THE S SIDE OF THE FIELD. DURING THE ENTIRE PERIOD; DISCUSSIONS OF WHAT WAS OCCURRING CONTINUED BTWN THE PLT AND THE SAFETY PLT AND THE CONSENSUS WAS THAT THE BEST THING TO DO WAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WHILE ALL OF THIS TRANSPIRING. LATER ON THE SAME DAY; PLT B TELEPHONED THE WARREN AFB BASE COMMANDER'S OFFICE; AND TALKED WITH A DUTY OFFICER IN THE HOPE OF ASCERTAINING WHO THE OFFICER IN CHARGE OF THE SECURITY DETACHMENT WAS; AND TO TALK OVER WHAT MIGHT BE BETTER COM PROCS FOR THE MIL WHILE OPERATING ON A CIVILIAN ARPT. NO RESPONSE AS OF THIS DATE HAS BEEN RECEIVED. ON FRIDAY; PLT B TELEPHONED THE UNITED STATES MIL OFFICE; TO FURTHER INQUIRE AS TO HOW TO CONTACT THE APPROPRIATE PERSONNEL; AND WAS REFERRED TO 'A MAJOR C FOR COMPLAINTS' AT WHICH TIME IT WAS EXPLAINED TO THE SECRETARY ON THE TELEPHONE THAT NO COMPLAINT WAS INTENDED; INSTEAD ONLY TO DISCUSS BETTER COMS IN THE FUTURE; AND TO PREVENT THE EXTREMELY FRIGHTENING SIT WHICH HAD OCCURRED FROM HAPPENING AGAIN. A FURTHER REF BY THE SECRETARY WAS MADE TO THE MIL OFFICES LOCATED ON CHEYENNE ARPT FACILITIES; AND A MAJOR THERE WAS INFORMED OF THE SIT; WITH A REQUEST THAT THE OFFICER IN CHARGE OF THE SECURITY DETACHMENT PLEASE CALL PLT B TO DISCUSS THE SIT. AGAIN NO RESPONSE TO THIS TIME WAS NOTED. A DECISION WAS THEN MADE TO FILE A RPT TO THE NASA SAFETY RPTING SYS SO AS TO DISSEMINATE INFO TO THE PLT POPULATION AND TO EFFECT BETTER PROCS BTWN MIL OPS; CIVILIAN ACFT; AND ARPT TWRS ESPECIALLY ON CIVILIAN ARPTS. IN DOING THIS; A CALL WAS MADE TO CHEYENNE TWR FOR THE INFO CONTAINED IN THIS RPT AND A STATEMENT BY TWR PERSONNEL THAT D SHOULD BE CONTACTED; THE TWR MGR; WHO WAS PREPARING A RPT ON THE INCIDENT. IN RESPONDING TO D'S QUESTIONS; THE TWR PERSONNEL ASKED 'IF THIS WAS IN REGARD TO THE INCIDENT ON THURSDAY IN WHICH SOME PEOPLE NEARLY GOT SHOT?' TO WHICH AN AFFIRMATIVE REPLY WAS STATED. IT IS CLR TO THIS WRITER THAT A NEAR TRAGEDY COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED BY THE SECURITY DETACHMENT USING THE FREQS WHICH THE ARPT AND ALL ACFT OPERATED ON. MOREOVER; THE OBSERVATION OF AN ACFT APCHING SHOULD HAVE LED THE OFFICER IN CHARGE OF THE SECURITY DETACHMENT TO IMMEDIATELY TRY TO CONTACT THE TWR OR THE ACFT BEFORE RAISING WEAPONS AT A CIVILIAN ACFT AND ITS OCCUPANTS. TO DO THIS NECESSITATES ADEQUATE BRIEFING OF THE PERSONNEL INVOLVED AS TO FREQS; PROCS; AND PHYSICAL LOCATIONS OF PERTINENT DATA ON AN ARPT BY ALL CONCERNED. MIL RADIOS SHOULD BE CAPABLE OF COMMUNICATING AND BEING HEARD BY ALL WHEN ENGAGED IN OPS ON A CIVILIAN ARPT. IF THIS HAD BEEN THE CASE; THE CONFUSION WHICH RESULTED FROM THE LACK OF CONTACT OF THE SECURITY DETACHMENT BY THE TWR WOULD HAVE BEEN POSSIBLY AVERTED. RADIO CHKS SHOULD BE MADE BY BOTH SECURITY AND TWR PERSONNEL BEFORE COMMENCING ANY KIND OF OPS. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: THE RPTR IS 'QUITE PLEASED' WITH THE RESPONSE THAT HE HAS RECEIVED TO THIS PROB. HE HAS HAD CALLBACKS FROM THE MIL AND THE MIL OFFICES AT THE ARPT; THE ATCT MGR; AND THE ARPT MGR. EACH ONE WAS VERY SYMPATHETIC WITH THE RPTR'S SIT. THE RPTR HAS NOT HEARD FROM ANYONE REGARDING: A VIOLATION OR WHOEVER HINTED THAT HE THOUGHT THAT THE RPTR MIGHT HAVE BEEN IN THE WRONG. HE IS 'REALLY IMPRESSED WITH THE ATCT' THAT IMMEDIATELY SENSED THE PROB AND STARTED TO MODERATE A POTENTIAL DISASTER. THE C141 WAS STOPPED ON A CIVILIAN TXWY; NOT ON THE MIL RAMP; AND WAS PARTIALLY BLOCKING 2 TXWYS. THE RPTR BELIEVES THAT NO ONE WAS GUARDING THE C141'S RADIOS OR A NORMAL VHF FREQ. THIS MADE COM DIFFICULT TO ESTABLISH. A COPY OF THIS LETTER HAS BEEN SENT TO A VERY LARGE PLT'S ORGANIZATION AND THE ARPT MGR. THE RPTR INSISTS THAT HE WAS FOLLOWING THE ATCT'S INSTRUCTIONS PERFECTLY AND NO ONE HAS SUGGESTED OTHERWISE.