The 'Seahawks' of VMAQ-4 have landed once again

Photo By Reina Vasquez | Staff Sgt. Brian Naylor, quality assurance chief with Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 4, inspects one of the rear panels of a Prowler after its return from a mission. This is the second deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom for the Seahawks of VMAQ-4.  

AL ASAD, IRAQ

05.30.2009

Story by Gunnery Sgt. Reina Vasquez 

II Marine Expeditionary Force   

AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq — Originally from Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, N.C., the Seahawks of Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 4 returned to Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, after only eight months at home. With due diligence, the Marines of VMAQ-4 returned to Al Asad to complete once more, another tour of duty in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Staff Sgt. Brian Naylor has been with the squadron for nine years and this makes his third deployment to Iraq.

"We were the first power squadron at Al Asad in 2005." The biggest change, Naylor said, was the operational tempo. "There's a lot less activity now, leading to a lot less flight operations." But that doesn't stop the Marines of VMAQ-4 from constantly putting in long hours in the heat and sand of the Iraqi desert.

Naylor serves as a quality assurance representative and a countermeasures technician. As a quality assurance chief, Naylor is responsible for ensuring, spot checking and overseeing what the mechanics, technicians and maintainers are doing with the aircraft.

"I make sure the Marines are using the correct tools and following the correct PPE," he said. "It's important that we don't get complacent," he emphasized, speaking about the change in operations and missions.

"We work on jets; we can't afford to be complacent, because if something breaks in flight, we endanger the aircrew. If something breaks while the aircraft is on the ground, we could mess up a mission that a crew was going to fly."

Ensuring pilots and aircrew get enough flying hours in also keep the Seahawks busy.

"With an influx of new pilots and their crews, constant training is imperative and the Marines need to get their training hours in," said Naylor.

Naylor also serves as the advanced skills management training coordinator.

"An ASM training coordinator makes sure all Marines are up to date on training and they're using updated publications to do their jobs," he said.

After an aircraft returns from a mission, Naylor inspects the aircraft as the quality assurance chief. He then passes on his recommendations to another member of the team.

"My recommendation goes to my maintenance officer for review," he said. Naylor likes staying busy and enjoys deploying. "It's great being with Q-4. It's one of the reasons I joined the Marine Corps."

He's definitely had that dream come true. Naylor said he also enjoys the teamwork the squadron, as a whole, brings to the table.

"We require multiple shops to fix an aircraft. Everyone comes together when it really counts, and that's really cool."

This is Lance Cpl. Michael Ghaffarian's second deployment to Iraq with the Seahawks. Ghaffarian, an engine mechanic in the powerline section of VMAQ-4, works on the Prowler's engine, and echoed Naylor's sentiment about squadron teamwork. With every launch, Ghaffarian said, there are typically two Marines from every shop, in case they need to troubleshoot something.

"There are a lot of Marines out there to get it [the aircraft] going," said Ghaffarian. Launching the Prowlers is just one of many responsibilities the young lance corporal has, although he said the best part of his job is being a part of the launch process.

"It's fun to launch an aircraft. It can take five minutes to an hour. It just depends, I'd say on average, it takes 20 minutes, but it's a fun thing to do," he said with a beaming smile and slight laugh.

As a Prowler mechanic, Ghaffarian begins to service the engine of the aircraft once it comes back from a mission.

"Everything you would do to tune up your own car, that's what I do...except it's for a jet."

Ghaffarian also does in-depth inspections of the aircraft, looking for any discrepancies with the jet and works a lot with the other shops to ensure the Prowler is flawless and ready for its next mission. "Every 72 hours or every two days, I'm out there, making sure the jets are ready for the aircrew," Ghaffarian said.

Making sure the aircraft are fueled and ready to go also keeps Ghaffarian busy.

"If it deals with engines, fuel or tires, that's us," said Ghaffarian, referring to the Marines in the powerline shop. "The biggest thing for me is to make sure the jet gets in the air and to take care of those launches."

Ghaffarian is also a plane captain for the Prowler and said being a plane captain is quite a responsibility.

As the Seahawks continue to dig their heels in and press forward, they'll pull together as only they can, committing themselves to peak performance in continued support of OIF.

For more information on the ongoing mission in Iraq's Al Anbar province, visit www.iimefpublic.usmc.mil/iimeffwd.

• Date Taken: 05.30.2009
• Date Posted: 06.05.2009 09:39
• Story ID: 34578
• Location: AL ASAD, IQ