Photo By Tech. Sgt. Alexander Cook | Staff Sgt. Drake Keske, 309th Aircraft Maintenance Unit dedicated crew chief, wears...... read more read more
Subscribe
Among these crew chiefs are a select few who hold the title of dedicated crew chief. Spending countless hours inspecting and maintaining every square inch of their aircraft, DCCs are assigned to a single aircraft and are ultimately responsible for not only that aircraft but also the safety of their pilots.
“DCCs are selected by their section chiefs based on initiative, leadership qualities, and knowledge of their aircraft,” said Staff Sgt. Drake Keske, 309th Aircraft Maintenance Unit DCC. “Most crew chiefs who come to Luke Air Force Base start learning the responsibility of their jobs and their actions, but becoming a DCC takes being a step above the rest to earn the title.”
Each aircraft at the 56th Fighter Wing has its DCC’s name displayed on the side of the aircraft, along with the name of the assistant dedicated crew chief. These crew chiefs have multiple responsibilities that require extreme attention to detail. They don unique uniforms to signify their important role.
“On a daily basis, we come in to perform our pre-inspections on our aircraft ensuring everything is in perfect shape,” said Senior Airman Eric Medina, 309th AMU DCC. “Once we launch and recover our jets, we perform another inspection to ensure everything is still in tip-top shape.”
Setting them apart from the rest, DCCs take full responsibility for their entire aircraft by also making exterior modifications.
“Typically, we come in to check our tools according to our shift, but for DCCs, our job is tailored around what we can do to our aircraft to improve it,” Keske said. “During our off-time, we like to personalize our aircraft by placing our squadron logos and emblems on the side which give us a sense of pride and ownership of what we work hard on every day.”
Another important aspect of being a DCC is building credence with pilots.
“It’s important we maintain good relationships with the pilots we have,” Medina said. “It’s a great feeling knowing there is mutual trust in having everything taken care of when it comes to the knowledge of our aircraft.”
The camaraderie and unwavering partnership between pilots and DCCs foster a team environment to accomplish the mission.
“Aside from having my name on the side of the aircraft, there’s such a great sense of gratification knowing I can put my jet and pilot in the air safely and fulfill a sortie to accomplish the mission of building the future of airpower,” Keske said.
| Date Taken: | 01.31.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 02.06.2018 15:00 |
| Story ID: | 264351 |
| Location: | LUKE AIR FORCE BASE , AZ, US |
| Web Views: | 56 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Dedicated crew chiefs: A step above the rest, by TSgt Alexander Cook, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT