From ground to air: Jet troops ensure aircraft sky bound

Published Sept. 8, 2009
By Airman 1st Class Allison M. Boehm
2d Bomb Wing Public Affairs

BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- Seventeen Airmen are responsible for the capability of more than 20 assigned aircraft's ability to fly.

The 2d Aircraft Maintenance Squadron's aerospace propulsion specialists ensure the jet engines stay in working order by means of routine maintenance and troubleshooting.

"We are flightline maintenance; whenever there is a problem with an engine, we are dispatched there to trouble shoot the problem and fix them," said Tech. Sgt. Nicholas Grady, 917th Aircraft Maintenance Unit propulsion element chief.

As part of their job, the jet troops are responsible for the periodic maintenance of the jet engines, hourly post flight inspections and training. However, their main focus is reactive maintenance meaning whenever a component breaks they troubleshoot and try to fix it.

In order to accomplish their mission, a new unit was established.

The newly formed 917th Aircraft Maintenance Unit is made up of 13 active duty Airmen from the former 11th AMU and four 917th air reserve technicians.

"We have learned a lot from each other from this merger," said Sergeant Grady. "This experience has been very beneficial to help produce better and more sorties for the mission."

Still, to get to the point where the Airmen were able to generate better sorties, they underwent preparation.

After 11 weeks of technical school and 15 months of on-the-job training, jet troops will have earned their five-level, but their training never stops.

Although the majority of their shift is spent working countless hours on the flightline, the jet troops mission requires them to be completely proficient in all aspects of their job.

"Without engines, the jets don't fly," said Airman 1st Class Tristan Thorland, 2d Aircraft Maintenance Squadron aerospace propulsion journeyman. "We are responsible for knowing how to troubleshoot and correct more than 30 components in the jet engine--whether the engine isn't putting out enough thrust or there is an oil pressure problem, it is imperative we know our job and how to fix the issue."

However, with constant training, difficulties can appear.

"The hardest aspect of this job is balancing training with our work load," said Sergeant Grady. "It is pivotal to get the newer Airmen on the scene and trained up so our team is experienced in the work we do and effective at doing it. Therefore, if we aren't working, we are training."

Since jet troops work under a time frame if a problem arises, this training serves to be very beneficial.

"We arrive at the jet prior to pre-flight inspection by the flightcrew," said Airman Thorland. "If any problems pertaining to the engine come up, we are there on standby to troubleshoot it and fix the problem. We inspect the engine, diagnose the problem and correctly fix it in less than two hours--allowing the pilots to complete their mission."

Whatever engine trouble may occur, Barksdale's jet troops train to quickly and successfully fix the problem.

"Aerospace propulsion is important because if we weren't able to properly maintain aircraft, pilots couldn't get trained and fly sorties which would degrade the mission of both the 2d bomb wing and the 917th Wing," said Sergeant Grady. "Without engines the jets don't fly--they could just practice their ground egress," he jokingly added.

Aerospace propulsion serves as a critical component of flightline maintenance.