Photo By Staff Sgt. Spencer Tobler | U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Michael Villamor, 374th Operations Support Squadron landing...... read more read more
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Members of the 374th Operations Support Squadron and 36th Airlift Squadron conducted rapid contingency landings on a recently approved alternate landing zone, Apr 8.
The 374 OSS air traffic control tower received notification of an in-flight emergency of a Yokota-bound aircraft prompting a temporary closure of the only runway.
This notification unfolded as four C-130J Super Hercules were culminating routine local training sorties. The temporary closure left the C-130 aircrews and air traffic controllers with a crucial decision: place the C-130s in a holding pattern and await runway clearance, or land on Taxiway Foxtrot as an alternate landing zone.
Faced with low fuel concerns and a unique training opportunity, the decision was clear.
“We saw this as an opportunity to utilize our newly approved landing zone with our air traffic controllers we have here,” said Lt. Col. Scott Branco, 374 OSS commander. “Today, they proved we have the ability to set up an LZ quickly for the arrival or departure of our C-130s.”
The 374 OSS has designated a select group of personnel as Landing Zone Safety Officers. These individuals are responsible for establishing and operating alternate runways when primary airfields are unavailable. The LZSOs are specially trained to assess potential landing areas, ensure safety protocols, and coordinate with air traffic controllers.
“The LZSO program is something that we started here at the 374 OSS and has since been propagated throughout Pacific Air Forces,” said Branco. “We’re proving that teams can go out anywhere to deploy, whether it’s at an airfield or some contingency location, to set up and operate a landing zone.”
Upon notification of the runway closure, the LZSO program director immediately gathered all qualified LZSOs. The team quickly assembled the necessary equipment and moved to taxiway foxtrot to begin preparing the landing zone.
“We had to measure out the area, make sure there were no foreign objects or debris, and check for aircraft wing tip clearance,” said Staff Sgt. Gabriel Garcia, 374 OSS senior watch supervisor and LZSO. “Once the area was prepped, we had to coordinate frequencies and get in contact with the aircraft to provide our safety assessment of the LZ.”
Taxiway Foxtrot received PACAF approval as an alternate LZ on April 2, six days prior to this real-world application. The 36 AS and 374 OSS maximized this opportunity to also incorporate aircraft departures from the foxtrot taxiway, further validating its use in emergent or degraded airfield conditions.
“We believe this is the way forward, especially in an operational sense,” said Garcia. “We don’t want to have our hands tied to where we can’t recover or generate aircraft. This capability shows that we can deploy our team anywhere with a long enough space to land.”
Capabilities provided by the LZSO program enable mission sustainment during contingency operations by increasing operational flexibility and runway resilience for a premier logistics hub in the Western Pacific.
| Date Taken: | 04.11.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.10.2025 22:21 |
| Story ID: | 495073 |
| Location: | YOKOTA AIR BASE, TOKYO, JP |
| Web Views: | 73 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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Pacific Air Forces
US Pacific Command (USPACOM)
