TOBYHANNA ARMY DEPOT, Pa. -- Tobyhanna Army Depot's past performance was key to leveraging a new capability and bolstering its Air Force workload.
Over the next several years, Team Tobyhanna will refurbish all fielded AN/FRC-181 Milstar Air Force Command Post Terminal radomes in addition to providing a variety of maintenance support services for the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), Logistics Operations and Support Division at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado.
Depot experts were able to verify mission capability after developing a process to remove multiple coatings from the radomes, repair the fiberglass structures as required, repair or replace hardware as needed, apply new coatings within specification, and inspect. Coatings are removed in a blast booth located in Building 1C, Bay 4, which was modified to blast with less aggressive media types. The new hydrophobic coatings are applied in a temperature and humidity controlled paint booth in Building 9.
SMC and Tobyhanna have had a long-standing relationship, according to Deborah Myers, Family of Advanced Beyond Line-of-Sight Terminals (FAB-T) Shelter Replacement and Radome Refurbishment Program manager. With more than 40 radomes requiring maintenance every three to five years, the capability could pay dividends for future applications.
"Blast booth improvements will significantly increase the lifespan of the radomes," said Myers. "The refurbishment program will not only support radomes, but also greatly add to supporting other programs that require similar maintenance. Additionally, Tobyhanna has added the depth and breadth of knowledge required to support a process not presently supported by all depots."
The depot's radome expertise can be traced back to the base realignment and closure of 1995 and the transfer of Air Force workloads from California to northeast Pennsylvania. The radomes were fielded in the 1990s and not maintained; consequently, many have accumulated severe mold and pitting due to exposure to varying weather conditions. The refurbished radomes will be installed at FAB-T sites. A radome sits on the roof of the Extremely High Frequency Antenna Support Shelter (EHFASS), which is a fixed shelter.
"We've proved that we could handle the radome workload so it only made sense to bring the refurb mission here," said Ron Scarnulis, lead industrial engineer in the Production Engineering Directorate's (PED) Mission Modernization Branch. Tobyhanna will also uninstall radomes scheduled for refurbishment at the depot and install completed radomes at designated sites.
Tobyhanna provides depot maintenance for the shelter to include hardness maintenance (HM) and hardness surveillance (HS) testing; mobile depot maintenance, which provides corrosion control, painting and radome inspection; antenna and component maintenance and inspection; as well as depot maintenance for Air Force command post terminal located in fixed and truck-mounted shelters. HM/HS testing and repair is an annual process to identify and correct deficiencies that result in degradation of the terminal's high-altitude electromagnetic pulse protection system. All deficiencies identified through testing are immediately corrected and recertified by Tobyhanna personnel.
Myers said the confidence of SMC personnel in the work of depot technicians will drive quality and progress through current and future radome requirements.
"This organization considers Tobyhanna the subject matter expert for the system and all of its equipment," she said. "Depot personnel have done an exceptional job researching and developing a technique to refurbish radomes, which will support the warfighter for both existing and new missions."
Milstar (Military Strategic and Tactical Relay) is a constellation of military communications satellites in geostationary orbit, which are operated by the U.S. Air Force, and provide secure and jam-resistant worldwide communications to meet the requirements of the armed forces. The Milstar system consists of three segments; the space segment which consists of satellites, ground terminals and users, and stations to command and control the satellites. The operational system can link to Milstar ground terminals installed on vehicles, ships, submarines and aircraft.
Tobyhanna Army Depot is a recognized leader in providing world-class logistics support for command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems across the Department of Defense. Tobyhanna's Corporate Philosophy, dedicated work force and electronics expertise ensure the depot is the Joint C4ISR provider of choice for all branches of the Armed Forces and industry partners.
Tobyhanna's unparalleled capabilities include full-spectrum logistics support for sustainment, overhaul and repair, fabrication and manufacturing, engineering design and development, systems integration, post production software support, technology insertion, modification, foreign military sales and global field support to our Joint Warfighters.
About 3,200 personnel are employed at Tobyhanna, which is located in the Pocono Mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania. Tobyhanna Army Depot is part of the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command. Headquartered at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, the command's mission is to research, develop, acquire, field and sustain communications, command, control computer, intelligence, electronic warfare and sensors capabilities for the Armed Forces.
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