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CVW-5 Hornet Squadrons Prepare for MCI

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS050801-06
Release Date: 8/1/2005 10:17:00 AM

By Journalist 3rd Class Christopher Koons, USS Kitty Hawk Public Affairs

USS KITTY HAWK, At Sea (NNS) -- The air squadrons of Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5 embarked on USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) are undergoing intense preparation for a safety inspection at the end of the Hawk/5 team’s summer underway period and has kept maintenance personnel working overtime to ensure that their aircraft are up to standards.

All squadrons must undergo a material condition inspection (MCI) every time they return from an underway period that lasts more than two to three months. The inspection, conducted by a team from Commander, Strike Fighter Wing Pacific (CSFWP), ensures that all of a squadron’s aircraft assets are safe to fly.

“A squadron must go through an MCI within 90 days of returning from an extended underway period,” said Chief Aviation Structural Mechanic (AW) Maximo Lutao, Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 195’s airframes division leading chief petty officer. “The inspectors will examine each of our aircraft to try and determine if there are any issues that will affect the safety of the plane.”

To make sure all of VFA-195’s aircraft are ready for MCI, the squadron’s maintenance personnel have spent the past month finding and correcting any possible discrepancies inspectors may find on their F/A-18C Hornets.

“Our guys have been working hard,” said Lutao. “They’ve been opening up every panel on our aircraft to check for any possible technical discrepancies.”

In addition to inspecting each aircraft, VFA-195 personnel have been busy ensuring that all other issues relating to the squadron’s mission are in order.

“All of our maintenance programs will be evaluated,” said Lutao. “The inspectors will also look at our aviation life support systems, such as our pilot gear, to ensure they are safe.”

VFA-195 is scheduled to undergo its inspection in late September, said Lutao, and the squadron’s personnel are ready for the thorough job the inspectors will perform.

“The inspectors will give out three possible grades for each area they inspect: pass, needs more attention or off-track,” he said. “Any area that’s listed as needing more attention or being off-track needs to have its discrepancies corrected within 30 days. Then, it will be re-inspected.”

The MCI team will also give an overall pass or fail grade to the squadron, said Lutao.

“If a squadron receives a failing grade, it can be shut down from flying until its discrepancies are corrected,” he said.

VFA-195 should pass its upcoming MCI with flying colors, said Lutao.

“We have a solid maintenance department and quality assurance program,” he explained. “We should do very well on the inspection.”

Many of the VFA-195 personnel involved with preparing for MCI described their extra work as just another aspect of their job.

“We still do our normal inspections, but we also go a little further,” said Aviation Structural Mechanic 1st Class (AW) John Crowe, who works in airframes division. “We’ve been opening up the aircraft panels to inspect things we usually wouldn’t look at on a daily basis.”

The Kitty Hawk Strike Group is the largest carrier strike group in the Navy and is composed of the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk, CVW-5, the guided-missile cruisers USS Chancellorsville (CG 62) and USS Cowpens (CG 63), and Destroyer Squadron 15.

Kitty Hawk is currently operating under direction from the U.S. 7th Fleet. Kitty Hawk remains a vital part of the U.S. commitment to Asia.