Almost from the beginning of Hooker operations in the Pacific Northwest in the early 1970s, the Coast Guard and the 92nd Avn Company saw the mutual benefits in working together to provide heavy lift support while at the same time giving our aircrews valuable and unique experiences working at remote lighthouses and in other missions in Washington Sound, The Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Washington’s wilderness outer coast. 

 

Our work included removal of PCB contaminated soil from Pados Island Light in the San Juan Islands. The Coast Guard soon found more work for us at Neah Bay on Tatoosh Island. Historic Tatoosh Island Light Station was manned for over 123 years. Plans called for the automation of the light and removal of most of the structures on the island including the two living quarters for the lightkeepers and their families, fallen 200-foot radio towers, six, 12,000 gallon fresh water holding tanks, a massive concrete meteorological weather station building and other smaller buildings. The lighthouse was to be restored and a new generator building flown in.  

 

Later the Coast Guard used our unique skills to bring power via an undersea cable laid from shore out to Destruction Island Light. Capt. Rick Dominy and his Chinook crew pulled the cable from a barge anchored near the beach at Quillayute out to the island. Now with power delivered to Destruction, no further diesel fuel deliveries would be needed  so the generator was shut down and held in reserve for emergencies. Mike Jones, Doug Houser and FE, Dennis Popple flew the mission to remove the three large diesel fuel tanks and an old cargo winch from the dock. The crew was told the tanks were empty. When the Chinook began the lift, it was immediately apparent that the  the tanks still had fuel in them. The tanks turned out to weigh 13,000 pounds.  The tanks were not rigged well for the 18-mile flight to Quillayute. The Flight Engineer watched as the heavy load began to rotate and saw through the ropes. The tanks were safely delivered to the airport.