SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. -- I’m the new guy and what an amazing first week it’s been!
Shortly after I took command of the 20th Fighter Wing, I watched our Viper demo team perform. As Maj. John “Rain” Waters rolled the F-16 Viper into a tight 9G turn, the deep rumble of the mighty GE-129 engine shook my chest and I thought to myself – I AM HOME!
When Rain flies the Viper, he makes it look easy. It’s not.
There are maneuvers in that demo where Rain is fighting just to breathe and stay conscious.
There are many actions happening around us like that. On the surface they look easy, but when you dig a layer deeper you realize there is a whole lot more going on.
Remember the thunderstorms last week?
Tech. Sgt. Chris Biddick remembers them well. He was the 20th Civil Engineer Squadron standby duty officer on Thursday. On a normal night it’s not a big deal. As problems arise on base, he fields the calls on his cell phone at home and dispatches the right crews to handle the jobs.
Shortly after the storm hit, he was saturated with reports from fire dispatch of power outages, and wind and rain damage across the base. To handle the flood of calls, Maj. Brandon Goebel, 20th CES operations flight commander, quickly stood up the Unit Control Center and recalled about 50 percent of the flight’s manpower.
Led by 20th CES operations manager, Airman 1st Class Jesse Brazil, a team of Airmen fielded calls, tracked damage and dispatched structures, electrical, power production and heating, ventilation and air conditioning teams.
The hard part is prioritizing where resources should go first. To do it right, you have to be intimately familiar with all the missions across this base and you also have to know the facilities. Some of those buildings are critical communication nodes, while others are crucial to combat and flight operations.
Much like a maintainer knows which jets are bad actors, Brazil and his team know the intricacies of these buildings. Some have bad pipes and leaky roofs, while others have temperamental air conditioning and electrical systems.
Senior Airman Andrew Pillar, 20th CES HVAC technician, had been outside repairing cooling for a server room. He didn’t even have time to remove his test gauges from the system when nearby lightning strikes drove him to quickly seek shelter.
Staff Sgt. Jacob Thompson, assigned to power production, was returning from servicing the generator at Poinsett Electronic Combat Range when he received word that the control tower had lost power. Electrician Staff Sgt. Matthew Range confirmed the team’s fears. Black River Electric Company had suffered a serious malfunction and the entire eastern side of the base was without power.
The high winds didn’t just break tree branches. Metal deflectors tore from overhead radiant heaters inside Hangar 1614, leaving one deflector hanging precariously over an F-16. Airman 1st Class Zachary Simmons responded to the call and secured the hazards so maintainers could move the jet.
The operations continued through the night. Even as the sun rose, there was still quite a bit of cleanup to be done to fully put the base back together. When I visited some of these teams on Friday afternoon, they were still working. I could tell they were tired and were looking forward to the weekend. Of course, just a few hours later another thunderstorm hit, and the entire machine kicked back into high gear.
To top it off, Hangar 1200's foam fire suppression system deployed, filling every square inch of that massive facility with nearly 20 feet of foam! That cleanup effort took a combined team of engineers, fire dawgs, maintainers and safety experts. Although the foam is environmentally friendly, our environmental experts were also on the scene to block the outflow from storm drains.
By Monday morning, the hangar and the rest of the base will look like nothing ever happened. The 20th FW and Shaw Air Force Base will be back to business as usual. Our 20th CES warriors make it look easy, but it’s not. When you dig a layer deeper you realize there is a whole lot more going on.
Every time I learn more about our Airmen and how they contribute to our mission, my perspective changes. It reminds me how important it is to always try to see the best in each other.
If you’re a pilot, appreciate the maintainers on the line and in the back shops that are there for long hours every day to get your jet ready to fly. Look them in the eye and thank them.
If you’re a maintainer, be proud of the pilots that borrow your jets and see them as an extension of your hard work.
Be grateful for the defenders at the gate who guard our perimeter in the rain and don’t give them grief when they pull you over for an additional inspection. Be patient with the Airman at the Military Personnel Flight who’s having trouble getting your orders.
Encourage the lab technician that poked your arm three times and has yet to find a vein. Fist bump the Airmen from the communications squadron that maintain and defend our networks. The list goes on.
This week, please high five the 20th CES warriors that put our entire base back together after those thunderstorms.
If you were frustrated that it took them a little while to get to your building, now you know the rest of the story.
Victory By Valor!
Maestro / Valor 1