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Advances in development of transport aircraft have historically outdistanced acquisition of suitable Ground Support Equipment (GSE). In the past the airline industry and the Air Force have used a family of GSE to on/offload transport aircraft. For example, main-deck cargo loaders for the main-cargo compartments, lower-lobe loaders for the aircraft belly compartments capable of handling unit-load devices (ULDs) like loaded pallets and/or stuffed containers, and finally belt-conveyor loaders for the aircrafts' bulk cargo compartments---for bulk cargo like baggage, mail, and other loose packages. The Air Force recently abandoned the above-mentioned practice and opted for a single “Cadillac type” Super Loader that “will do everything,” on/offload all aircraft upper and lower lobes.

Advances in development of transport aircraft have historically paced modernization of complementary Ground-Support Equipment (GSE). This paper shows that a family of cargo on/offloading loaders, capable of servicing the aircraft's main and lower lobes simultaneously is more efficient and cost-effective than a single Cadillac-Type Super Loader that “can do everything.” The Air Force has recently awarded two contracts to GSE manufacturers to build and test two prototype Super Loaders. The winner is supposed to on/offload everything from a C-130 whose cargo deck is only three feet, three inches high to a B-747, whose main deck upper limit is almost 18 feet high, and all other standard-body aircraft in between like DC-8s, B-707s, as well as all of the wide-bodied aircraft lower lobes, whose door sizes and heights vary extensively.

This paper addresses the options available to on/offload the KC-10 currently being procured by the Air Force. The typical Air Force-owned 463L-System aircraft cargo loaders will not reach high enough to service the main-cargo deck of the KC-10 (or B-747). Advances in development of transport (and tanker) aircraft have historically paced development and acquisition of complementary grounds systems (1)*. The analysis focused on the use of various Materials-Handling Equipment (MHE) alternatives including the 463L-System**. These were (i) KC-10 On-Board Loaders (OBLs); (ii) Austere Elevator Loaders; (iii) 15K Forklifts; (iv) Leased Loaders; and (v) 25K Transporter Loaders with Adapter. Key observations were: (i) OBLs tend to be expensive; (ii) Elevator Loaders are relatively inexpensive and versatile; (iii) Existing 15K Forklifts can be used safely; (iv) Industry did not express interest in leasing loaders; and (v) 25K Transporter Loaders with Adapters have serious stability problems.