JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
The professionals who make the repairs and modifications that keep the Air Force's aging T-38s poised for flight celebrated a major milestone at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph this month.
Inside Hangar 76, one of three facilities that received extensive renovations while their workload continued unabated, the civilians assigned to the 571st Aircraft Maintenance Squadron Operating Location A gathered together Feb. 6 and savored their accomplishment - the on-time production of the 100th T-38 that has come out of the depot since the operation was turned over from contractor Lear Sigler Inc. to the Air Force in October 2010.
"Since that time, we've produced 100 straight airplanes that have come out of the depot on time, which is a pretty big feat in our business," Jay Gregson, 571st AMXS OL-A depot maintenance director, said.
Gregson, an Air Force veteran who was called upon to stand up the T-38 depot as an Air Force Materiel Command facility nearly two years ago, said the 100th on-time production aircraft completed by the 571st AMXS OL-A, a unit of the 309th Maintenance Wing at Hill AFB, Utah, required an aircraft structural inspection.
Gregson said his team accomplished this feat and attended to many special projects, such as structural inspection time compliance technical orders and video data recorder system and speed-brake switch modifications, during a hectic period of transition. They also handled several drop-in maintenance projects that took them as far away as Louisiana to pick up crashed jets.
"We just finished our hangars," he said, referring to the $5.5 million project that transformed Hangars 75 and 76 and part of Bldg. 241, their headquarters at JBSA-Randolph, and included the purchase of equipment, furniture and toolboxes for the mechanics. "It's been one and a half years in a constant state of renovation and hirings, so this is a significant milestone. These guys have worked hard. We've asked them to do a lot."
The 571st AMXS, which now occupies four hangars, produces "anywhere from eight to 10 jets per month," Gregson said, but their workload will soon accelerate even more with two major projects.
"In October we are ramping up for another workload - about 13 jets per month - to change magnesium flight control rods to aluminum, at 400 hours per jet," he said. "We'll take care of 450-plus aircraft in Air Education and Training and Air Combat Commands."
The team will also embark upon Pacer Classic III, an extensive six-month modification program that will produce about 22 aircraft per year, at 12,000 to 14,000 hours per jet.
Gregson said the workload will increase from more than 40,000 hours this fiscal year to more than 102,000 in fiscal 2013 and about 289,000 in fiscal 2014, but reinforcements are also on the way.
"We will go from 70 people to about 300 in the next two years," he said. "We'll hire 100 more this year, from mechanics to planners, schedulers and supply people."
Gregson said the 571st AMXS was initially able to hire many of the personnel who worked for LSI.
"We were able to keep the core nucleus T-38 experience with our organic workforce and our contract field team, M-1 Services," he said. "That was our foundation to grow the rest of it. They all have a great attitude.
"We want to be a flexible, agile, responsive, high-quality facility," Gregson continued. "We want to be the maintenance, repair and overhaul facility of choice for the T-38."
Addressing his team during the celebration this week, Gregson said their workload is growing while the Air Force is downsizing. The 571st AMXS, which occupies Hangars 75, 76, 82 and 83 and most of Bldg. 241, will soon need more hangar space within their "depot campus" to meet the growing demand for MRO on the T-38, especially as the Air Force decides on the new trainer that will eventually replace this workhorse training platform.
"We're building up," he said. "That's a great place to be. You guys are the best. Our Air Force leaders are watching you and they are impressed."