The creaking started about mid-week. Every time we raised or lowered the landing gear, the vertical tracks in the cargo compartment sidewall would protest. It was mild at first, but by the time we'd made it from Honolulu to California it was obvious the gear needed to be looked at. It was our choice: We could either call for maintenance now or be forced to call them on the next leg after we'd landed gear up. Wisely, we decided to drop the dime in California, but were told that the nearest C-130 folks capable of helping us were in Colorado Springs. No biggie, we'd play it safe and make the 800-mile trip gear down.
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