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April 4, 2009
‘Year of the NCO’
Oklahoma Guardsman survives C-130 crash
By Sgt. 1st Class Darren D. Heusel
Joint Force Headquarters Public Affairs
OKLAHOMA CITY – This may be the “Year of the NCO,” but for Sgt. 1st Class Eddie Simpkins, what happened on June 27 last year in Iraq will likely not soon be forgotten.
Simpkins, an equal opportunity advisor for the Oklahoma Army National Guard’s Joint Force Headquarters, volunteered to deploy with the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team from October ’07 – October ’08 and was onboard a C-130 along with 37 other passengers when the plane suddenly lost power and crashed into the Iraqi desert.
Simpkins said he and the other passengers boarded the C-130 bound from Balad Air Base to Qatar, where he and the others were to enjoy four days of rest and relaxation.
He said the plane left Balad around 1 p.m. for what was supposed to be an hour-and-a-half flight, but shortly after takeoff Simpkins and the other passengers noticed “something out of the ordinary.”
“I just remember it was hot,” said Simpkins, 41, of Midwest City, referring to the typical weather in Iraq. “I promise…that I can remember…it was definitely over 100 degrees.”
Simpkins said he and the other passengers were in the air about 10-15 minutes when he heard a clicking sound that “got everybody’s attention.”
“Of course, we didn’t think much of it,” he said. “The lights flickered on and off for a minute, then they went back off.”
Simpkins said the next thing he knew, “we were hitting the ground.”
“The crew didn’t say brace for impact or anything,” he said.
Simpkins said the landing was “very rough, very violent.”
“It just shook you from side to side,” he said. “There were Kevlars banging into each other, seats breaking…”
Simpkins said the impact lasted what seemed like an eternity but in reality lasted only “about seven or eight seconds.”
“Honest to God, the first thing I thought when we hit the ground was, ‘We weren’t in Qatar,’” he said. “I knew we had crashed, but we didn’t know what caused it until we got out of the plane, choking on dirt and dust.”
After the crash, Simpkins said he was trying to get out of the plane, “but the door was stuck.”
“We had to kick it open,” Simpkins said of the door. “We finally got out and I immediately looked to my right…I saw the right wheel well was totally separated from the plane. I looked to my left and saw the front wheel well totally separated from the plane, off in the distance as well.”
Simpkins said when the passengers and crew managed to free themselves from the wreckage that came to rest outside the Green Zone near Abu Ghraib, “you couldn’t see the person standing next to you from all the dirt and the dust.”
Simpkins said he remembered thinking he couldn’t believe what just happened.
“I kept watching the expressions on people’s faces and every one of them were different,” he said. “Some were in shock; some grabbed their cameras and started taking pictures.”
Simpkins said he remembered this one female Air Force captain in particular.
“She was in shock and talking out of her head,” he said.
Simpkins said while the passengers and crew were waiting around after the crash, two Iraqi police officers showed up in a Jeep.
“I remember them talking to this sergeant major who was on the flight with us and telling him that they thought we were all dead when they first rolled up on the scene,” he said.
Simpkins said to his knowledge, none of the passengers were seriously injured, although the aircraft sustained quite a bit of structural damage and eventually had to be destroyed.
Officials said the event marked the first time a C-130 had been destroyed by a controlled detonation in combat.
“After the dust settled, I remember hearing someone saying we needed to set up perimeter security,” he said. “I remember thinking, ‘With what?’ We don’t have any weapons.”
Simpkins said the only weapons at their disposal were two 9 mm pistols belonging to the pilots, one M4 and two M16s belonging to the crew.
“We were all in the prone position when I looked around and saw this captain just squatting down,” he said. “I asked her if she was OK. She said ‘no,’ so I took her hand and started talking to her.
“A few minutes later, we heard some Blackhawks coming. After they landed, the sergeant major told us to get on the helicopter.”
Simpkins said the Blackhawks flew the passengers back to Balad, where they received medical treatment and were asked to give their account of what happened. About four or five hours later, he said, several of the passengers got back on another plane and flew to Qatar to continue their R&R.
“It was strictly voluntary at that point,” he said, referring to those who wanted to continue with their four-day pass. “Not everyone went this time!”
Turns out, Simpkins said the pilots told them all four engines on the C-130 went out at about the same time, forcing the aircraft into the desert.
“I just thought the whole thing was surreal,” he said. “I remember thinking, ‘Here we are…outside the Green Zone…no weapons…what are we going to do if insurgents show up?’”
To this day, Simpkins said he still thinks about the crash.
Simpkins said he’s flown five or six times since the crash and every time he hears a noise “it gets your attention.”
“Like those people who crashed into the Hudson River, I can say I lived through it,” he said. “In fact, I was watching that incident unfold on TV…I remember seeing the look in their eyes and thinking, ‘I can relate to what they’re going through.’”
The irony, Simpkins said, is he works on C-130s full-time as a civilian at Tinker Air Force Base near his home in Midwest City.
“As a man of faith, I look at the experience as it just wasn’t my time go,” he said.
“It was quite an experience, though,” added Simpkins, who offered he would go back to Iraq in a heartbeat. “I’m a firm believer that if it’s your time to go, it’s your time to go. It doesn’t matter whether you’re in a combat zone or on the streets of your hometown.”
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Sidebar
Since 1775, the Army has set apart its NCOs from other enlisted Soldiers by distinctive insignia of grade.
With more than 200 years of service, the U.S. Army’s Noncommissioned Officer Corps has distinguished itself as the worlds most accomplished group of military professionals. Historical and daily accounts of life as an NCO are exemplified by acts of courage, and a dedication and a willingness to do whatever it takes to complete the mission. NCOs have been celebrated for decorated service in military events ranging from Valley Forge to Gettysburg, to charges on Omaha Beach and battles along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, to current conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In recognition of their commitment to service and willingness to make great sacrifices on behalf of our Nation, Secretary of the Army established 2009 as Year of the NCO.
Throughout 2009, the Army honors NCOs through initiatives and events that:
Army officials invite you to join the celebration of one of America’s greatest assets, the NCO Corps, the backbone of the American Army.
For more information on “Year of the NCO,” go to http://www.ngb.army.mil/features/yearofthenco/default.aspx.
(Add NCO insignias across top or bottom of page during layout!)
SUGGESTED CUTLINES
090428-A-5811H-001 – Sgt 1st Class Eddie Simpkins, a member of the Oklahoma Army National Guard who was onboard a C-130 when it crashed last year in Iraq, takes part in his annual weapons qualification April 28 at the Camp Gruber Training Site near Muskogee. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Darren D. Heusel, Joint Force Headquarters Public Affairs, Oklahoma Army National Guard)
090428-A-5811H-002 – SFC Class Eddie Simpkins, a member of the Oklahoma Army National Guard who was onboard a C-130 when it crashed last year in Iraq, poses for a photo during a recent mini annual training period at the Camp Gruber Training Site near Muskogee. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Darren D. Heusel, Joint Force Headquarters Public Affairs, Oklahoma Army National Guard)
