Anything But Static: Behind the scenes preparing aircraft for display

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Shawn Rhodes
  • 927th Air Refueling Wing
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  The early morning air was still cool on the flight line here in Tampa when a group of Airmen began walking toward the KC-135 Stratotanker. Their mission today was not to ready the plane for a flight - in fact, it was the opposite; covering the engines, putting wooden blocks around the wheels, and disconnecting the battery. Today, servicemembers prepped an airplane to stay on the ground.

While thousands of people tour military aircraft at air shows, recruiting events and military graduations, very few ever see the hours of work going on behind the scenes to prepare these aircraft for visitors.

"People don't usually think of maintainers when they think of the Air Force," said Staff Sgt. Stephen Shin, a crew chief with the 927th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron.

Shin and his comrades normally ensure these airplanes are ready to transport fuel anywhere in the world, but a few times a month their mission changes. While flying accomplishes combat missions, opening a plane up for a tour accomplishes another kind of mission altogether.

"We want people to have a better understanding of their Air Force," said Col. Thom Pemberton, commander of the 927th Operations Group. "Because we are a reserve unit, we want people to understand that it could be their neighbor in town who works and flies on these aircraft."

Prepping the planes for visitors can take anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour and a half, depending on the number and experience of the troops available for the job. Checklists ensure no detail is overlooked as they childproof the aircraft- no one wants their kid falling in a jet engine, after all.

"We cover the front and back of all four engines," Shin said. "During one tour, we had people trying to crawl into the engine. We also cover the antennae protruding from the bottom of the aircraft and raise the wing flaps so no one bumps their heads. Then we tape any cords to the ground so they are not a trip hazard, and disconnect the batteries so no one accidentally turns on the power flipping a switch inside the plane."

In addition to taking things away from the aircraft that could harm passerby, maintainers also make an important addition to the Stratotanker prior to a tour: Air conditioning.

"It can get up to 120 F inside the aircraft in the summertime," said Tech. Sgt. Trevor Wilson, a crew chief with the 927th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. "We bring in an external air conditioning unit that pumps 40 F air into the plane, just for the comfort of the visitors. It's funny, but we don't use it ourselves."

Each of the engine cover sets weighs 10 pounds. Combine that with four 25 pound 'chalks' used to secure the wheels, a 50 pound tool box, 25 pound launch kit and 14,100 pound stair truck guests use to enter the aircraft, and it is easy to see how much work is cut out to prepare it for display.

When the plane is rendered inoperable and all safety hazards taken care of it is finally ready to receive guests. Maintainers usually standby as pilots and boom operators lead guests inside and around the KC-135, answering questions and telling stories of previous missions. When the tour ends, the maintainers stay behind and undo their work to prepare the plane to fly.

"It takes a lot of effort to put a static display together," Pemberton said. "It's a challenge for our Airmen to make it happen, but they understand the value of it."