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Dedicated crew chiefs maintain KC-135s

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Jenna K. Caldwell
  • 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. --  The 22nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron and the 931st Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, have teamed up as part of a new total force integration program to improve maintenance on KC-135 Stratotankers.

The Dedicated Crew Chief program matches a team of Airmen to aircraft and they become the responsible oversight for any maintenance issues that arise with that specific jet.

"The DCC program is intended to instill pride in ownership and increase the quality and availability of our aircraft," said Lt. Col. Duane Richardson, 22nd AMXS commander. "The program focuses a lot on the little things. The DCC is charged to take care of those little maintenance issues before they become one big issue that takes the jet down for a while."

To celebrate this achievement, the 22nd AMXS and the 931st AMXS held a DCC Induction Ceremony, May 2.

During the ceremony, 22nd AMXS and 931st AMXS leadership presented certificates to the DCCs and ADCCs, charged them with their duties and unveiled the DCC boxes on two aircraft.

The DCC boxes include the names of both the DCC and ADCCs and are painted next to the crew entry shoot. 

58 DCC's and assistant DCC's were assigned to 25 KC-135s. Seventeen KC-135s were assigned to active-duty teams and the other 8 assigned to air reserve technicians.

"It's absolutely amazing working with the 931st AMXS in this program," said Richardson. "You have a more seasoned Squadron of maintainers, as a lot of the 931st AMXS guys were prior active-duty. They have a lot of experience maintaining aircraft, so mixing those with our young [active-duty] guys really helps enhance the program immensely."

The team includes a DCC, an NCO-in-charge, and at least one ADCC.

A main benefit to the DCC program is that chain reaction problems, where one thing goes bad and other problems follow, should become a decreasing trend because one crew is dedicated and familiar to just that aircraft, said Tech. Sgt. Anthony Jordan, 22nd AMXS DCC.

"When everybody looks at [the aircraft] they are going to think of me, because my name is on the side," said Jordan. "It gives you a sense of pride and lets you establish continuity with the aircraft, instead of bouncing from aircraft to aircraft. You actually get to focus on one and put a little bit of your own personality into it."

Other career fields, not just crew chiefs, can be DDCs and ADCCs as well. Specialists such as guidance and control, communication navigations, and electronic environmental Airmen can also be assigned to an aircraft.

"It's not just assigning a person to a jet; it's about assigning the right person and the right team," said Richardson. "Passion is the driving motivator behind the DCC program. If you have passion to maintain the aircraft and you have that pride in ownership, that's whose name I want on the jet."