Total Force Integration: 92nd and 141st Air Refueling Wing maintainers work together to complete mission

Published Oct. 28, 2011
By Airman 1st Class Earlandez M. Young
92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. -- In preparation to re-open Fairchild Air Force Base's, Wash., new runway sometime in November, flight line and inspection maintainers, along with other Airmen who have been pulling duty at Moses Lake, Wash., since January are ready to come home.

The 92nd Maintenance Squadron (inspection) and 92nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron (flight line) maintainers say they know returning to Fairchild doesn't mean their workload will slow down.

For example, on Oct. 18 both maintenance squadrons were in the middle of a 10-day periodic inspection on a KC-135 Stratotanker. A PI is designed as the major inspection for an aircraft between periodic depot maintenance cycles. The maintainers overall goal for these inspections is to make the aircraft more reliable.

Master Sgt. John Lipkea, 92nd Maintenance Squadron flight chief, said the inspection is usually completed on an aircraft after every 1,800 flying hours or two years since the previous inspection, but because pilots have been so busy flying aircraft on daily missions in deployed environments, they are reaching those 1,800 hours in just nine months.

Maintainers at Moses Lake are currently working 12-hour shifts and in addition, more maintainers are called in to help meet the inspection deadlines.

Senior Airman Christopher Freebourn, 92nd MXS crew chief, who was working on the right wing of a KC-135, says he has enjoyed his time working at Moses Lake.

"I like the environment we work in here - yeah it gets cold inside the hangers, but what's new. We are hardly ever distracted and are able to put total concentration in the task at hand, and when there are a dozen people with different specialties working on one aircraft - concentration helps."

The Oct. 18 inspection was completed with the help from 141st Air Refueling Wing maintainers.

"I enjoy working with the young guys - I tend to feed off their energy," said Staff Sgt. Brian Ross, full-time guard technician, as he carried the co-pilot seat from the cockpit. "I look forward to working with the 92nd ARW maintainers when we return to Fairchild."

During the 10-day inspection, day one through four discrepancies are identified. The inspection is thorough -- maintainers de-panel the aircraft; look at everything from cables, surfaces and structure of the aircraft, any kind of corrosion or break down of material, seals etc.

"At the end of the duty day four, the inspection is complied with," said Tech Sgt. Jeremy Pomeroy, 92nd MXS dock controller/floor supervisor. "So, in four days we do a strip down and a major inspection. This allows us to do fixes or any major repairs during days five to 10."

This KC-135 was the ninth aircraft Fairchild maintainers performed a PI on in Moses Lake this year.

Pomeroy said I've heard nothing but great things from the Moses Lake community. We thank them for opening up their city to us the way they did.

"The community here has been extremely supportive in many ways such as, providing monthly luncheons for us at the Porter Steakhouse," said Airman 1st Class Vincent Williams, 92nd AMXS crew chief. "I can't thank them enough."