Fried COD
August 13th, 2009 | Aviation Carriers The Middle East | Posted by Andrew Scutro
A C-2A Greyhound, commonly known as a COD, stops for gas at an airbase in the Middle East before proceeding to the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan.//Photo by Sheila Vemmer, Navy Times
Everybody who rides CODs (carrier on-board delivery) surely has a story. The rumpled DV kid who barfed, the two-hour orbit over the carrier, the guy who acted just like the annoying guy on a normal airplane who would not stop talking despite the industrial noise levels. Et cetera. Don’t get us wrong. CODs are deceptively cool aircraft for the reliablity and durability factors. We are grateful for the ride.
But on a recent flight in the Middle East several pax woke up from a woozy sleep with the sensation that their feet were on fire. Sure the plane was over the desert but far above the desert. The once cool breeze of air from overhead nozzles was replaced by pizza-oven levels of heat. No joke.
It turns out that a petite chief selectee passenger was seen shivering under the cool air the rest of the pax were enjoying, but rather than offer her an extra layer, we understand an aircrewman had the guys in the cockpit turn on the heat. Nice gesture. But my sneakers felt like they were melting.