Maintenance Marines keep "Frogs" and CH-53Es Battle Ready
Marine Corps News
Release Date: 11/21/2002
Story by Cpl. Matthew J. Apprendi
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif.(Nov. 14, 2002) -- Throughout the Marine Corps there are many unsung heroes, the ones who work behind the scenes, the Leathernecks who ensure the welfare and success of their comrades in the spotlight.
For maintenance Marines in Detachment B, Marine Aircraft Group-46 it's their job to keep the more than 20 CH-46 and CH-53E helicopters flying high to complete their numerous missions, but also to ensure the safety of every hard charger in the aircraft.
"We are the little wizards behind the great and all powerful Oz," said Maj. Rick Ostermeyer, maintenance officer, Helicopter Marine Heavy Squadron-769.
It is a continuous process for these wizards, working 12 to 16-hour days, to perfect the machines that hover thousands of feet above land dwellers.
"Yeah, we work long and hard hours, but I have no concept of time. The motivation of the hard charging Marines makes the day well worth it," said Cpl. Gabriel Reyna, airframes mechanic, Helicopter Marine Medium Squadron-764.
Reyna and the other Marines in airframes handle all the bodywork and hydraulic systems of the birds. They fix anything from the automatic ramp to patching fiberglass on an engine cover.
Airframes is just one of the legs in the chair that supports a squadron. Avionics handles the miles and miles of electrical wiring spiraling throughout the bird's controls and gauges -- anything that needs an electrical current. It could only take one wire, out of the lot of them, that disrupts a vital control system, said Lance Cpl. Robert C. Smith Jr., avionics mechanic, HMM-764.
These birds wouldn't be flying anywhere without the Leatherneck's weapons of trade. In some ways the mechanic's tools are more valuable than their rifles.
"We must have total accountability of every tool, if one is lost or broken, we shut down the entire squadron -- nobody will fly until all pieces are found," said Gunnery Sgt. Brad Perry, tool room chief, HMH-769.
Each Marine must sign out for tools. Every toolbox has exact fittings where the tool belongs. No Marine can leave a toolbox unattended or unlocked if not in use, Perry said.
"We even keep track of the rags," Perry said. "Accountability is everything."
If a tool is misplaced after being used, there's a possibility of it being lodged in the aircraft's engine -- it could jeopardize the mission -- more importantly the lives of the crewmembers, Perry said.
There is no specific section in maintenance more valuable than the other, all of them work together to accomplish the same mission -- keeping healthy birds, said Ostermeyer.
"At the end of a long day, when they see a helo come back safely from a mission, the fruits of their labor are realized," Ostermeyer said.
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