QA EET members valuable assets Published July 2, 2012 By Senior Airman La'Shanette V. Garrett 2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- More than 20 Exercise Evaluation Team members from the 2nd Maintenance Group quality assurance section participated in a Nuclear Surety Exercise here from June 25 through 29. An NSE is an exercise the 2nd Bomb Wing uses to ensure Airmen performing their duties can safely handle, control and protect strategic assets, as well as prepare the wing for higher headquarters inspections. The role of QA EET members during the exercise was to temporarily act as the inspector general and ensure the maintenance group is capable of managing strategic resources and equipment. "We inspect storage facilities, weapons handling, personnel reliability program administration, control of priority areas and adherence to current technical data and weapons system safety rules," said Master Sgt. Jeremy Konicki, 2 MXG quality assurance chief inspector and EET member. Quality assurance is also responsible for the Maintenance Standardization and Evaluation Program. "The program is designed to provide the 2 MXG validations in the quality of maintenance on the aircraft, weapons and associated support equipment," said Konicki. "Through the MSEP, QA provides commanders and supervisors the data that identifies strengths and areas for improvement. "QA also provides system expertise to assist the squadrons in resolving unique maintenance issues. The EET provides oversight of actions taken during the exercise to ensure the wing is performing at or above standards. From planning and evaluating to giving feedback and writing reports, the work for them starts before the exercise and continues well after it's over. "Pass or fail, the initial report is a verbal with the individual or the custodian of the equipment," said Master Sgt. Sean Brasier, 2 MXG QA chief inspector and senior EET member. "We tell them what we inspected and if there were any deficiencies. The report then goes out to all the supervisors in the squadron so that everyone in the squadron can be aware of the problem." When playing the role of EET members, QA inspectors act as best they can to perform the mission as the IG. "It's a hat we have to put on and be that outside agency," said Brasier. "So the guys on the flightline can know what to expect when they are being inspected for the actual inspection." "As a QA inspector, I try to make sure that the people I inspect not only realize that I am there to ensure they were doing their job accurately, whether that meant they would label me a good guy or bad guy that day, but realize that regardless of the outcome of that report they can always come to me and ask a question and get a honest technical order answer to help them resolve the problem," he continued. EET members are valuable assets to the wing and mission as they bring their subject-matter expertise from their units to help improve different sections and guarantee mission success. "As a QA inspector and EET member, I like to tell our guys that the mission of the base is to get those planes off the ground. Ensure that none of those screws and bolts fall out, that we always stay tight and fly, fight and win with awesome weapons platforms--allowing operators to put warheads on foreheads," said Brasier. The NSE is only one of several major exercises the 2nd Bomb Wing will undergo this year with its newly assigned commander, Col. Andrew Gebara.