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EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska - With the clock about to
strike 2 a.m., the front door of the 354th Aircraft
Maintenance Squadron repeatedly swings open and shut as
Airmen file in for an earlier than normal start to their day
of missions.
With jets to launch, which will support
exercise training on the opposite side of the nation, one
thing is on each Airman's mind — success.
Exhaust billows as two F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter aircraft engines start in Dock 7 at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, Dec. 7, 2015. More than 30 maintenance Airmen worked an early shift to help launch several jets to Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., for Checkered Flag 16-1, a large-force exercise that simulates a large number of aircraft in a deployed environment to cross-check weapons systems. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Shawn Nickel) |
“No one here comes to work and says, ‘I'm going to be
terrible at my job today,'” said Maj. Blair Byrem, the 354th
Aircraft Maintenance Squadron commander. “I'm a lucky
commander to have people like I do. I set out a task and sit
back and watch the professionals succeed.”
Each
maintainer carts tools to the assigned aircraft and begins
to complete a lengthy list of tasks, each with a technical
order to make sure a microscopic detail isn't missed. Hours
pass as wrenches turn, fluids flow and the sinister paint
scheme jets are readied for take off.
“The TOs are
step-by-step to keep thing consistent, safe and correct,”
said Staff Sgt. Eric Sandberg, a 354th AMXS crew chief.
“Even if you have done the job a million times it doesn't
mean you won't miss something. Changes happen and
complacency can create mistakes. They become especially
important on days like today when it's cold outside and
everyone is running on little sleep.”
After hours of
preparation pilots “step” – the long walk from the 18th
Aggressor Squadron – through the frigid cold to their
respective cockpit. Not a mechanical worry is on their mind
because maintainers have been there as the hand on the clock
spins round, ensuring safety, mechanical soundness and
cleanliness.
While the last checks are made, two
things loom outside: darkness that won't end for several
hours and temperatures well below zero. These two things
won't put a hitch on the mission, however.
“It is so
cold, but the mission must go on,” Sandberg said. “Being
able to complete our tasks despite the cold and dark is part
of what makes us the best.”
After the pilots are
secured into the seat they will occupy for the next eight
hours, the cockpit slowly seals shut with a click, closely
followed by an ear-piercing alarm sound indicating the
enormous bay doors are opening. The 65-degree interior air
visibly wafts into the cold as the inversion crumples the
light into wisps, reducing visibility.
With a huge
puff of smoke, each jet whines to a start and the hustle
begins – go time.
“Once those doors open is when all
your hard work starts to show,” Sandberg said. “We did it,
they are ready to start, ready to taxi; that's when the good
feeling starts.”
The air is a frosty 10 below zero
outside, but the vacuum of the powerful engines chills the
air to well below minus 30. However, no temperatures change
is apparent as the work goes on. Airmen bustle around seven
aircraft, seemingly silent as their voices and movement are
muffled by the blare of turbines.
“More than 200
days out of the year it's below freezing and 60 days a year
it's below zero and anywhere around the world when you are
working on a car or a jet it's exasperating in these
temperatures,” Byrem said. “With the years of sending jets
to exercises and events around the globe, we have managed to
launch a full complement of aircraft, never failing to
fulfill our commitment. We rarely will miss a sortie due to
mechanical failure at the 18th regardless of the weather.
That is a testament to the physical and mental toughness of
the Airmen who work in this unit.”
With a quick
salute from seven crew chiefs, each aircraft enters the
darkness outside. It takes a squint to see anything but the
running lights as they hustle down the long, icy taxiway.
The roar may be distant as the alarm sounds and the doors
shut, but the job isn't done.
“We go out to the end
of the runway for one final check,” Sandberg explains.
“That's our last chance to see anything we missed, have the
weapons teams arm the weapons systems and see our work take
off.”
At last the work is nearly complete. However,
the endings of stories aren't always happy.
With
hours of work into each jet and the anticipation of take off
on everyone's mind, a mechanical failure held up the aerial
re-fueling aircraft, which was traveling to support them on
the way to Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. The hold up
costs the day's work and promises a mulligan tomorrow.
“One more long 12-hour shift is the first thing that
hits your mind,” Sandberg said. “Sure, it's a knock to
morale, but we all stick together and it just makes the next
successful launch that much sweeter.”
More photos available below
By U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Shawn Nickel
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2015
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