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380AEW Article

Power production keeps lights shining on 380th AEW

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Amanda Savannah
  • 380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  A maintainer on the flightline completes his 3 a.m. job and returns to his unit's tent to take a break, log on to a computer and check e-mail.

Within five minutes, the power goes out. "Oh great," he thinks. "Now what?"

Though this scenario is fictional, it's a situation that brings the 380th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron power production section to the forefront of everyone's mind when it's real.

The 380th ECES power production section provides the power the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing requires to perform its mission.

The section is operated 24 hours a day, seven days a week to ensure power is always available to its customers.

"We provide prime power to critical facilities on base, and some not critical ones," said Tech. Sgt. Lucky Talmage, 380th ECES power production NCO in charge. "Without power, everything else is just a static display."

This power is provided by the section's generators. More than half of the base's generators run as the primary power source for the more than 180 facilities they are attached to.

"Some facilities are too far from our host nation power grid; others need low voltage (120), 60-cycle power, normally only seen stateside," said Master Sgt. Shunne Elerby, 380th ECES facility support superintendent. "Commercial power provided by our host nation allies is 220 (volts)."

"At home station, everything is run off of commercial power," Talmage added. "Generators at home are real property installed equipment units that that run when the power goes out. Here, we're actually providing the power 24/7."

The section also provides power to the base's light carts, which provide lighting to the base during the hours of darkness, as well as operates the wing's aircraft arresting systems, which stop tail hook-equipped aircraft on the flightline during in-flight emergencies.

To work on the generators, power production technicians must have experience as an electrician as well as mechanic. Though the generators themselves are mechanical, the alternators that supply power to them is electrical.

"Some are more comfortable with one or the other," said Talmage, a Paoli, Ind., native deployed from Langley Air Force Base, Va. "Everybody brings their own specialty to the table. Without that specialty, we might not be as effective."

Staff Sgt. Erik Antonson, 380th ECES power production technician, enjoys the challenge of his job.

"It's not really something new (every day), but there's always different challenges every day," said Antonson, a Vallejo, Calif., native deployed from Lakenheath Air Base, England.

One such challenge is the new technology sometimes involved, he said.

"It's becoming real technological," Antonson said. "Computers pretty much run everything, just like your car."

He said a generator is an engine, like a vehicle, which is hooked to an alternator, which creates electricity. The engine drives the alternator.

"Regulating that and metering that (is) computers," he said. "They're always coming up with new things for cars. They do the same things with generators."

Antonson said the technicians also rely on electricians to do their job, as electricians work with the power lines and cables that connect and supply electricity to the generators.

Senior Airman Matt Norman, 380th ECES power production technician, also enjoys working with the mechanical and electrical functions of his job.

"On the mechanical side, we've got to keep the generator running," said Norman, an Augusta, Kan., native deployed from Langley AFB. "On the electrical side we've got to keep power (running) and hook the cables up to the facilities so they have the necessary load. I enjoy both of them."

He also enjoys the importance his job bears on the mission.

"Pretty much nothing around here will run without us," he said.

Talmage said his team is "one of the best teams I've worked with" while deployed.
"We have a wide variety of folks with different skills, from different ranks," he said. "Overall I think our dynamics are great. We accomplish the mission with little interruption from preventable generator problems."

Elerby agreed.

"This team of 10 landed with just five days' transition time and a tough learning curve," he said. "With the aid of excellent continuity books and two airmen from the last rotation, power production has met every challenge.

"I think the team is performing well (and) looking ahead to create an enduring legacy, while keeping over 3.5 (thousand) customers mission-capable."

Antonson said keeping the customers mission-capable means a job well done.
"If you don't know that we're there, we're doing our job right," he said. "No one really realizes that we're there until the power goes out."