62nd AW trains for Operation Max Endurance

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. – On June 21, Airmen with the 62nd Airlift Wing conducted a C-17 Globemaster III Max Endurance quick-turn checklist ground training test. The 62nd Operations Group, 62nd Maintenance Group, 62nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron and the 8th Airlift Squadron all worked together to unlock critical ground servicing capabilities allowing expansion of the Agile Combat Employment envelope.

The ACE operational doctrine provides guidance for Airmen to rapidly innovate and generate discussions across the force to develop new best practices.

In coordination with the 62nd OG, the 62nd MXG initiated a new local maintenance checklist enabling them to conduct aircraft engine oil servicing procedures without having to fully shut down the aircraft.

During the test, aircrew ran checklists which involved controlling engine settings on a C-17 and providing critical communication with maintenance personnel to ensure safe and rapid servicing of engine oil, minimizing ground time and keeping their flying assets in the air and on the move.

“The 62nd OG appreciates the staunch efforts of our maintenance partners as we work together to accelerate change by safely and smartly expanding the employment envelope for the C-17, all in-line with the Chief of Staff of the Air Force’s ‘Accelerate Change or Lose’ ACE objectives,” said Capt. Warren Tichenor, Operation Max Endurance planner with the 8th AS.

Prior to the execution of the ground training test, 62nd MXG and 62nd OG members developed the checklist and conducted a tabletop exercise to identify potential failure points and improvement areas with the goal of ensuring the checklist would work when applied.

This allowed aircrew and maintainers to sync checklists and responsibilities, while understanding each other’s roles to minimize potential risk to personnel and equipment.

This was the first ground test training conducted for this procedure in preparation for Operation Max Endurance, slated to occur next month.

“The phenomenal partnership we have here between the maintenance group and the operations group is unlike any other place I’ve seen,” said Capt. Binh Truong, chief of tactics with the 62nd MXG. “Our two groups have fostered an incredibly strong relationship built on trust, credibility and mutual understanding to work through challenges to achieve a common goal of delivering lethality to any corner around the globe at a moment’s notice.”