Photo By Senior Airman Amelio Brown | Members of the 722nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron close a KC-135 Stratotanker engine...... read more read more
Subscribe
MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. – The 22nd and 722nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadrons came together to perform a complete engine swap on a 66-year-old KC-135 Stratotanker, which started July 31, 2025.
McConnell has relied on its maintenance squadrons to keep its aircraft running efficiently. In this case, the engine experienced internal damage after a compressor, the purpose of which is to pressurize air intake into the engine to optimize output, and stalled.
The typical engine swap can take anywhere between a couple days to a week. Containing a plethora of moving parts and costing around 4-million dollars, these swaps are a delicate process, explained Tech. Sgt. Jacob Huffman, an aerospace propulsion specialist with the 22nd AMS. However, each one is different and comes with its own set of unique challenges.
“The engines go up slightly different every time, so you never know how easy it’s going to be,” Huffman said. “There were three chain hoists, and unfortunately one wasn’t working correctly when we dropped the engine, so we had to replace those with another set. And one of those were also not working correctly, so we had to replace that one also. So that was the big challenge on this one.”
Despite setbacks, both squadrons persevered and eventually completed the task at hand. This task required the collaboration of officers, noncommissioned officers, and junior airmen, some of which had only been on base for a couple weeks.
“It’s an eye opener to see what goes on in aircraft maintenance,” said Airman 1st Class Joshua Jolin, 722nd AMS aerospace propulsion specialist. “It’s been really rewarding I’d say, I learned so much. I just got here from tech school, and this is the first thing I’m doing.”
Many of the Airmen involved in the process expressed their satisfaction with being a part of the engine swap. For some, a sense of pride, and for others, a great responsibility. Regardless, this was an opportunity to be a part of a task outside of their everyday scope.
“It feels good knowing you got an aircraft back to flyable conditions,” Huffman said. “You do this job, and you want to make sure that it works properly so the aircrew can take it and go up and then come back safely. That’s kind of our whole job, to make sure the aircraft is safe and ready to fly for them.”
Ultimately, this swap and the collaborative effort it took is a microcosm of how the duties of these maintainers trickle up into a larger picture. This engine swap means McConnell has another operational KC-135, which means the base can continue its mission of providing global air refueling.
| Date Taken: | 08.07.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 08.15.2025 11:39 |
| Story ID: | 545602 |
| Location: | MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, KANSAS, US |
| Web Views: | 35 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Always ready: McConnell maintainers swap KC-135’s engine, by SrA Amelio Brown, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
