A-Team maintenance keeps planes in the air

  • Published
  • By U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Kirby Turbak
  • 97th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
ALTUS AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  A U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft engine hangs from the wing with its covers open revealing its complex design made up of metal tubes and bolts.

Below it, members of the 97th Maintenance Directorate, also known as the A-Team, dig inside the engine like a pride of lions after a kill.

Other members on the ground go back and forth from large rolling tool boxes bringing the proper equipment to those inside the engine.

The A-Team is made up of around 400 workers, mostly civilian maintainers, but a handful of active duty Airmen are also a part of the team.

Many workers are U.S. Air Force retirees or veterans, but some of the workers are graduates of the Grow Your Own Mechanic Program, an extensive course that teaches and certifies civilians as aircraft mechanics.

"We do all the maintenance on all the aircraft so the training mission can continue," said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Ryan LaBee, isochronal inspection dock maintainer.
Not only do they handle the routine maintenance, they also perform larger tasks.
Recently, members did an engine swap on a KC-135.

"It's something different," said Robert Watson, jet engine mechanic. "It's rare that we change an engine on a tanker."

The engine was being replaced due to internal damage possibly from foreign objects.
The old engine will be sent to Tinker Air Force Base, to determine the cause of the damage.

With such large and important tasks the A-Team has to work as just that: a team.

"This engine change was actually a group effort," said Rob Smith, inspection dock flight chief. "They all pitched in to do a turn around on the old engine removal and the new engine installation."

Pooling their efforts, the A-Team is able to successfully take on tasks such as engine swaps and regular maintenance of the aircraft at Altus, AFB.

The A-Team's mission is incredibly important because it allows pilots, loadmasters, and boom operators to continue Altus' mission of forging combat mobility forces and deploying Airman Warriors.

"If it wasn't for us, we wouldn't be flying airplanes," said LaBee.