An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Airmen keep mission soaring

  • Published
  • By Capt Vince King Jr.
  • 455th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan --  Every day Airmen across the wing work together to ensure their individual mission gets done to the best of their ability and Nov. 18 communication was tested.

Recently, wing personnel discovered a large hole on the taxiway, which if had gone unnoticed, could have caused a lot of damage and heartache on everyone's part.

Rather large, the sinkhole had developed underneath the center of the taxiway and had caused the concrete to collapse on the centerline.

"The hole was approximately 50 feet wide," said Major Brad Waters, 455th Civil Engineering Squadron commander, after further examination of the hole.

After notifications were made, elements from civil engineering, security forces, maintenance and operations groups and devised a plan to fix the sink hole, without interrupting the various missions on the flight line.

According to the Major, the squadron had to perform a temporary repair to allow aircraft to transit over the taxiway first.

He said, "We began the temporary repair at 9 a.m. and it was completed at 6 p.m. that night."

With the initial fix completed, the team prepped the area for asphalt and placed a secondary fix over the area to allow cargo aircraft, when needed, the ability to transit over the hole on Sunday morning.

While all the temporary fixes were being done, the maintenance squadron had it's own mission that needed to be accomplished. During their shifts, the Airmen continued to work on the aircraft, fixing anything that needed repairs, making sure the aircraft was ready for its next mission.

As many of them continued working on the aircraft, other maintenance Airmen assisted by towing aircraft around the taxiway and on various parts of the flight line while trying not to interrupt the various flight line missions.

As construction progressed on the taxiway and aircraft were being towed and relocated on the flight line, the security forces squadron had to make the necessary arrangements to ensure all aircraft were secure at all times.

According to Capt. Kenneth Shirley, 455th Security Force Squadron commander, the squadron had to close various entry control points and establish new ones becasue of the of the constant changes of aircraft parking on the flight line.

Once aircraft were moved and asphalt was ready, it only took CE about two and half hours to complete their mission, according to Major Waters. After it settled overnight, the taxiway reopened the Monday morning.