Photo By Airman 1st Class Christopher Morales | Senior Airman Robert Moran, 3rd Operation Support Squadron aircrew flight equipment...... read more read more
Subscribe
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska - In 1995, Air Force Capt. Scott O’Grady was shot down over Bosnia. He was able to stay alive with a 29-pound survival bag filled with rations, equipment and, most importantly, a radio he used to call for help.
From night vision goggles to parachutes and everything in between, 3rd Operation Support Squadron Aircrew Flight Equipment Flight Airmen check, inspect, correct and double-check so the equipment like what O’Grady used works just as efficiently.
Flying a routine mission or an emergency night flight can have the same consequences. Human error and technical difficulties can take down an aircraft just as swiftly as an enemy assault.
AFE’s motto is “When everything else fails, we are the last ones to let them down.”
Their job is to inspect, maintain and configure aircraft and aircrew with AFE, maintain oxygen equipment and survival gear - in case of an emergency - or just flight helmets, masks and night vision goggles for everyday missions.
“We don’t always see the fruit of our labor [because] the emergency equipment on board isn’t used every day, which is a good thing,” said Senior Airman Robert Moran, 3rd OSS AFE journeyman. “When they need to use AFE, it works every time.”
AFE covers emergency gear like lifeboats, chemical bags and personnel-recovery kits, as well as location-specific equipment, like the Arctic kits, survival vests and body armor.
“If [an item] has any write-ups, [AFE] have to fix it again, and we check to see if it was done correctly. Then they put them it back in the lockers,” Staff Sgt. Felicia Druin, 3rd OSS AFE craftsman. “We also have technical orders. When they are inspecting, they go step-by-step by the TO.”
The flight also supports the 962nd Airborne Air Control Squadron as well as the 90th and 525th fighter squadrons.
“We have approximately 190 aircrew members, and each one has [a] locker here with their helmets, masks, protective gear and other equipment,” Moran said. “Sometimes, you are inspecting and maintaining gear that is just rarely used - but when it is, it really matters.
“We maintain their helmet[s], which [are] a HGU-55/P and their masks, which could be a MBU-12/P,” Moran said. “If the aircrew members are going to go on a mission, they usually come here in the morning requesting their gear.”
The airmen also maintain passenger oxygen systems, life rafts and PFDs.
“We installed [recovery kits], which contain two C-cell radios [which] call-out in case of emergency,” Moran said. “There are instructions for our guys to follow, and it will reach out to a rescue unit which will find them and take them home.”
Sometimes more or different equipment is packed for the situation.
“We have seven survival vests that go on the jet along with seven body armor vests,” Moran said. “This is what the aircrew members would use when flying over [a] hostile environment.”
“In the winter time, we put on extra kits for the C-17 [Globemaster IIIs] and C-12 [Hurons], called Arctic kits,” Moran said. “There are two bags on each C-17 and one on each C-12, [they] carry all kinds of other cold-weather gear.”
The Arctic kits are designed for tundra survival and are placed in aircraft every year from October through May.
There are low margins of error when flying, especially when an aircraft is only 500 feet above the ground in limited visibility, said Air Force Capt. Joshua Topliff, 517th Airlift Squadron Readiness Flight commander.
AFE works day and night because aircraft may leave at a moment’s notice.
Any and all missions go with a sense of urgency and safety, but when all else fails aircrew can rely on AFE.
“It is very rewarding knowing that what you’re doing is saving a life and giving them the good training they need,” Druin said.
| Date Taken: | 09.18.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 12.09.2015 13:09 |
| Story ID: | 183961 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, ALASKA, US |
| Web Views: | 87 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, AFE Airman provide lifesaving equipment on every JBER flight, by A1C Christopher Morales, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
