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Keeping the Workhorse of the RAF Flying
Keeping the Workhorse of the RAF Flying - Friday 15 February 2008
The C-17 is used for strategic air transport of personnel and support equipment over long distances. It is currently being used at about 120 per cent of the originally planned flight hours per year and helping maintain such a high tempo of operations is a Boeing Field Service Team based at RAF Brize Norton.
Boeing have delivered four C-17s to the RAF since 2001 and the fifth is due to be delivered this month with another expected in June 2008. As a sign of the aircraft's durability the first two aircraft delivered to date have clocked more than 10,000 flight hours, and the second two are following close behind:
"To say the C-17 is a workhorse is a massive understatement," said Wing Commander John Gladston, Officer Commanding 99 Squadron at RAF Brize Norton. "The C-17 has filled an enormous need for the Royal Air Force in terms of supporting the operational air bridge to both Afghanistan and Iraq."
Key to the aircraft's success is the Boeing C-17 Field Services team at RAF Brize Norton. The team is on call 24/7 as part of the Globemaster Sustainment Partnership contract with the Ministry of Defence. Fully integrated with RAF maintainers, the Boeing team works to ensure outstanding dispatch reliability of the C-17s:
"The Boeing field service team is an integral part of my squadron," added Wg Cdr Gladston.
Sergeant Baron Baker, avionics technician for 99 Squadron said:
"Having the Boeing team next door is vital. If they weren't here, jets wouldn't fly. We know we can contact them any time of day or night, and they'll be there. Usually they have the part or the answer we need; but if not, they find a way to get it."
The Field Services team primarily provides engineering, supply support and support-equipment maintenance services. Field Service engineers located at main operating bases and forward operating stations hold post-production product review authority, which allows engineering disposition on-site:
"After the appropriate analysis, structural and mechanical repairs can take place on-site instead of having to return the aircraft to manufacturing or depot maintenance facilities," said Bob Rabbitt, Boeing engineering manager for the C-17 Field Services International Hub. "This gets C-17s back in the air in the least amount of time."
Field Services reps at Brize Norton communicate with counterparts at other C-17 bases regularly, providing input and updates on situations that might arise:
"Once in a while, a rep at another base may identify an unusual problem," said Mike Joyce, a Boeing avionics engineer at the Brize Norton International Hub, "but because the problem is shared promptly with the rest of the team, we all know what to look out for."
Along with available engineering, consistent maintenance is key to keeping the C-17 aircraft flying:
"We stock, store and issue everything needed for constant maintenance of the C-17," said Danny Rose, Boeing supply chain specialist. "We utilize an automatic requisition for replenishment to maintain a continuous inventory system of 7,300 parts and provide consistent maintenance."
Tom Murray, senior aircraftsman and avionics mechanic, added:
"This is crucial with less than six hours to turn an aircraft around."
Since making its RAF operational debut in Afghanistan in 2001, the C-17 has seen action in many areas of the world, providing strategic transport and airlift capability. More than 9,500 sorties have been flown, thousands of troops transported, countless supplies shipped, and 39,700 hours clocked:
"It's an amazing aircraft," said Flight Lieutenant Steff Marsh, C-17 captain at RAF Brize Norton. "Flying the C-17 and working with the Boeing team has made this assignment better than I could have ever dreamed."
Editor: Madonna Walsh.
Image 1: A C-17 of 99 Squadron RAF. Photographer: Sgt Jack Pritchard, RAF.
Image 2: A 99 Squadron C-17 is loaded with vital supplies for members of the Armed Forces based in Afghanistan. Photographer: SAC Andrew Morris.
Image 3: Casualties are evacuated from theatre to the UK aboard specially equipped RAF C-17s, looked after by specifically trained aeromedical teams. Photographer: Picture: RAF.