BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan --
Putting the POW in Airpower, Airmen assigned to the 455th
Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron’s Armament shop are charged with the
responsibility of ensuring weapons systems here are locked, loaded and standing
by to support counterterrorism operations.
Acting as Freedom’s
Sentinel is no small task and demands the undivided attention and unyielding
devotion of those bearing the armament patch.
“We fix and
maintain all the weapons systems for the aircraft such as pylons, bomb racks,
launchers, rocket pods and guns,” said Staff Sgt. Damion Arendtsen, 455 EMXS
Armament technician. “It’s important because we make sure the weapons systems are
functioning properly, so that at the critical moment when a pilot needs that
asset, they can be confident it will work and the mission will be completed.”
A pivotal piece of
guaranteeing that critical moment goes off without a hitch is completing
day-to-day maintenance.
“The
Armament shop does all major scheduled and unscheduled maintenance inspections
on weapons support equipment associated with the F-16 weapons system,” said
Senior Master Sgt. Andrew Keaunui, 455 EMXS Armament flight chief. “Armament
Airmen troubleshoot wiring on equipment in-shop and gun system jams
on-aircraft. They are also responsible for maintaining all War Readiness
Material assets, which are equipment in extended storage.”
For Airmen
like Arendtsen, each day presents new challenges and problems to solve.
“On an
average day I could be conducting scheduled maintenance ,which is performed in
specific cycles based on either a set number of months or the number of times
the weapon fires,” the staff sergeant said. “I might also be working B
maintenance, which is anything that has broken between scheduled inspections. I
could also be working on the flightline if loaders have issues with any of our
equipment or a gun on an aircraft; I never know what the day will hold.”
In spite of
their hectic and often unpredictable schedules, both Arendtsen and Keaunui make
quick work of finding value in the long hours and taking pride in a job well
done.
“Knowing I
am a big part of getting the mission done and being able to help the men and
women on the flightline out is extremely rewarding to me,” Arendtsen said. “I
get a lot of satisfaction out of knowing that because I was able to
troubleshoot an issue, someone’s day just got a lot easier.”
Keaunui
echoed his teammate’s sentiments.
“It is
rewarding to see Airmen do their job and do it well,” he said. “It is a
reflection of not only their trainers, supervisors and unit, but also their
self-pride and quality of work in all they do.”