Navy vets explore another type of craft, the C-5M Super Galaxy aircraft Published Feb. 28, 2019 By Tech. Sgt. Carlos J. Treviño 433rd Airlift Wing JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas -- A group of 33 Navy vets and their families from the USS Lloyd Thomas Reunion Association visited the 433rd Airlift Wing to tour the C-5M Super Galaxy Feb. 25 here. The former sailors, now in their 70s and 80s, were in San Antonio for their annual reunion. For some like Scott Sheffer, the reunion coordinator, seeing the largest aircraft in the United States’ inventory, was a reunion of a different sort. “I saw one (a C-5) in the 1970s going into Clark Air Base in the Philippines,” said Sheffer. “It was the biggest thing I ever saw. We really enjoyed our trip here today. We enjoyed the Airmen helping us out. It was a much better tour than we expected.” The group was hosted by aircrew from the 68th Airlift Squadron. They spent an hour learning about the aircraft’s cargo carrying capabilities, the glass cockpit, the plane’s exterior and missions the Airmen have flown around the world. “The size of it and all this stuff,” Andy Vargo said, as he motioned to the panels in the flight engineer's area on the flight deck. “I was a throttle man in the Navy for the ship’s engines. This is fascinating,” the native of Pasadena, Maryland said. For one Airman, a tour like this is not a one-way experience. “I enjoy being able to talk with the people of the past who have come before us and have seen a lot of the different things, it’s different, but it’s the same today as it was when they were serving,” said Tech. Sgt. Kevin Meredith, 68th AS flight engineer. “It’s fun to see the similarities years later. It’s good to see the older generation still excited about the things we do today. It’s not lost on them, as it is lost on the general population today.” “Being part of a military unit, you have that esprit de corps, and we enjoy supporting our military,” Sheffer said.