Maintainers give tankers facelift

Photo By Senior Airman Jeffrey Withrow | Staff Sgt. Matt Washburn performs maintainence on the wing of a KC-135 Stratotanker at Grissom Air Reserve Base, Ind., March 1st, 2017. The maintainance was part of an isochronal inspection, in which every system on the aircraft is inspected for damage and signs of wear once every two years. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Harrison Withrow)  

GRISSOM AIR FORCE BASE, INDIANA, UNITED STATES

03.08.2017

Story by Senior Airman Jeffrey Withrow 

434th Air Refueling Wing

GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. -- With engines gutted, panels stripped, and wings torn apart, hangar 3 looks more like a boneyard than an inspection shop.

In reality, Grissom’s hangar 3 is the location of the isochronal inspection, a process that gives renewed life to aircraft worn down by time. During the inspection, Grissom’s highly skilled team of maintainers check every gear, valve and line to ensure that the tankers are at peak performance and remain mission-ready.

“When we pull a jet into the hangar, we’re looking to make sure everything runs perfectly,” said Tech Sgt. Lloyd Pilkin, 434th Maintenance Squadron jet engine mechanic. “It has to be ready to go at the drop of a hat, because that’s what the mission requires, and that’s what we’re here for.”

An ISO inspection is so thorough and detailed that several dozen mechanics will spend three weeks on a single tanker, said Pilkin. Roughly eight ISOs are performed each year, with one every two years per aircraft.

“We’ll have 50 or 60 guys working a single aircraft,” he said. “We’ve got teams of jet mechanics, hydraulics specialists, crew chiefs, structural repair technicians, electrical and environmental specialists, guidance and control mechanics, and communication and navigation specialists.

“Everyone’s got their own piece of the pie,” he added.

One such specialist is Tech Sgt. John Lambert, 434th MXS hydraulics mechanic. Lambert’s role in the ISO is to remove and inspect the refueling boom, along with the related fluid systems.

“We drop the boom and take it into our shop,” said Lambert. “There we do a full inspection, and we try to get as many people looking at it as possible.

“The more eyes, the better,” he added.

During the inspection, hydraulics mechanics look for issues such as missing hardware, broken or worn-out bearings, damaged fuel tubes and leaking nozzles.

“Preventative maintenance is very important on a boom,” said Lambert. “A whole lot can go wrong if you’re not keeping up with it.”

Preventative maintenance was a high priority across the board, as every part of the aircraft plays a critical role, said Tech Sgt. Brian Baumfalk, 434th MXS Crew Chief.

Baumfalk serves as an inspector for the aircraft, following a set of guidelines known as inspection cards to systematically check every aspect of the aircraft.

“There are over 100 cards in the inspection,” said Baumfalk. “We divvy those cards up among the team so there’s a clear designation of who is responsible for what.”

Each card corresponds with a specific component, usually those that are known to develop cracks and wear out from use. The cards detail procedures for inspecting that particular component.

“For the most part, we all work independently on our cards,” he said. “Everyone manages their own area, and we work on the entire aircraft at once.

“For some jobs, though, we need everyone working together,” he added. “When the plane needs to be lifted up on jacks, or anything big like that, that’s when we get a lot of hands involved.”

Despite all of the time and work that goes into an ISO inspection, the main purpose is to prevent more serious issues from occurring down the road.

“The end goal of an ISO inspection is to get the tanker back in the same shape it was the day it was built,” said Baumfalk. “We run a paperless system so documentation is easy, and the whole process is very efficient.

“It’s a heck of a lot better than waiting for something major to break down the road,” he added.

The 434th ARW is the largest KC-135R Stratotanker unit in the Air Force Reserve Command. Men and women from the Hoosier Wing routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission.

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• Date Taken: 03.08.2017
• Date Posted: 01.30.2018 08:41
• Story ID: 263796
• Location: GRISSOM AIR FORCE BASE, INDIANA, US