Air Force Ground Support Equipment - (2) SE-88 Runway Snow Removal Equipment

[Monthly Defense Times Editor-in-Chief An Seung-beom] The runway snow removal equipment operated at Air Force airbases is the SE-88. SE stands for Snow Equipment, and 88 signifies that it was first developed in 1988. The SE-88 was developed in-house by the Air Force by recycling engines from retired fighter jets.

The equipment is more familiarly known by its nickname "Mazinger" than by its official designation. It is a commercial truck fitted with engines from retired fighter jets. Initially, it used the J-47 engine from the F-86 Sabre fighter jet, but currently operates with either the J-85 engine from the F-5 fighter jet or the J-79 engine from the F-4 Phantom fighter jet.

The medium-sized equipment equipped with the J-79 engine is mainly responsible for runway snow removal, while the smaller equipment with the J-85 engine primarily handles snow removal on aprons and taxiways. When the engine is running, jet engine exhaust gases at temperatures of 400 to 500°C are emitted. This heat is used to evaporate the snow, thereby conducting snow removal operations.