Follow me, save me, repair me: crash recovery

Published Aug. 10, 2010
By Staff Sgt. Phillip Butterfield
332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq -- Most back shop maintenance units in the Air Force exclusively deal with "off" aircraft parts. However, one back shop flight deals with out-of-the-ordinary aircraft, wheels and damage.

The 332nd Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron's Transient Alert, Wheel and Tire and Crash Recovery Flight is one of those flights with three unique missions housed under one roof.

The Wheel and Tire shop handles all F-16 Fighting Falcon tire repairs, said Master Sgt. James Faile, 332nd Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron Transient Alert, Wheel and Tire, Crash Recovery Flight chief. Crash Recovery handles all in-flight and ground emergencies, ensuring the runways and taxiways stay open. TA coordinates the smooth movement of aircraft not assigned to Joint Base Balad.

These three shops act as roommates in the same house with different jobs and life styles.

Most people have heard the idiom "where the rubber meets the road." Airmen of the Wheel and Tire shop embody this saying everyday in form and function.

"We take worn out F-16 wheel assemblies and make them like new," said Tech. Sgt David Southern, 332nd EMXS Crash Recovery team chief. "We receive assemblies from the flightline, strip them down, inspect for defects, rebuild then replace the tire and return them to service. In a month we will refurbish more than 70 assemblies while supporting more than 1,000 sorties."

If wheel and tire was not here, then JBB would have to send assemblies out to get repaired, which would be extremely expensive and slow the mission, said Sergeant Southern, a native of Carthage, Mo., deployed from Langley Air Force Base. Va.
When it comes to moving aircraft, TA ensures the right plane is in the proper location on the airfield.

"TA helps JBB by ensuring the smooth movement of transient aircraft in and out of Balad," said Tech. Sgt. Michael Daely, 332nd Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron Transit Alert shift supervisor. "These aircraft arrive here to deliver mail, supplies or to pick up and drop off passengers. "We use our 'Follow Me' truck to help pilots negotiate their way around the airfield. The truck has a large sign that illuminates the words 'Follow Me.'

TA assists more than 500 military and civilian aircraft a month that carry approximately 20,000 passengers, 4,000 tons of cargo and four tons of mail, said Sergeant Daely, a native of Boise, Idaho, deployed from Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany.

Unlike TA, some shops hope to never be utilized for what they are trained for.

Crash Recovery is the shop whose sole purpose is to manage clean-up efforts after an aircraft incident on the airfield.

"When it comes to crash recovery, I hope we are never needed," said Sergeant Southern. "But if something does happen, we are ready."

Crash recovery, the largest shop in the flight, controls of thousands of dollars of equipment. Some of this equipment includes: tractor-trailer trucks, cranes, aircraft hoist equipment and an inflatable aircraft lift system used if a hoist is not adequate to lift an aircraft.

"As long as there are planes flying, there will be a need for crash recovery - they go hand in hand," said Sergeant Southern.

With three different missions happening simultaneously, Airmen of this conglomerate flight are ready for whatever the job can toss at them.

"The Airmen here have done an exceptional job of taking care of the mission," said Sergeant Faile, a native of Kershaw, S.C., deployed from South Carolina National Guard. "They adapt to every situation thrown at them."