With 28 days to go until my retirement from the Coast Guard, today I will hit on an awesome experience a few of us mechanics from around the H-65 community were able to be part of. Assisting ALC (Aviation Logistics Center) with the H-65 Charlie Model rollout in Elizabeth City. Whenever an aircraft requires modifications, they are completed either at a Unit level, of at ALC, depending on the intensity of the maintenance. If it is something like a parts change, minor modification, of installing a new piece of equipment, we will usually handle it at the unit. But if it is something that falls under major modifications, like say, a Model Upgrade, it will be completed when the Helo goes to ALC for Overhaul or Depot Maintenance. Such was the case when it was time for the Charlie upgrade between 2005 and 2006. This was a pretty major Modification (new engines, and extended nose, and a new tail rotor to name a few), and the Coast Guard number crunchers had everything lined up pretty well, so they would be able to send one or two to Elizabeth City for its Mod without creating a backlog on the line. Then Katrina happened, and all those Programed Flight Hours were thrown out the window. Suddenly, Helos that should have had another 3-6 months to go before they needed to be sent back were out of time. The Coast Guard moved some Helos around the fleet to shore up any gaps, and started sending them in for Overhaul and Upgrade. At the time, ALC was turning and burning, pumping them out as fast as they could, but there is only so hard you can work for so long. So ALC decided to reach out to the fleet and ask for a few Mechs from the units that could afford it to come up there for the final push in getting them out to the fleet. In Miami, we had received out Charlies the previous November, so Senior Chief Dave Kiser sent me up for about a month in June of 2006. I was put to work on the End of the Line, where the Final build-up and testing is complete before sending a newly minted Charlie out to its new Air Station. These photos are from the Product Line, where you can see Helos in all states of repair and modification. So a couple of cool things to know about working at ALC. It is a pretty big unit, with a staggering amount of work, so they hire civilians to work on the aircraft there. And what better civilians to hire than former Coasties who spent a career working on those aircraft. So when I was checking in, I bumped into a few of my old shipmates, turning wrenches as civilians. Douglas Nolting, one of my First Class Petty Officers from NOLA was there, as were a couple of others. And aside from the Civilians, they have a pretty large Coast Guard compliment. And when I walked into QA one day to get my job inspected, who should pop up from the cubicles but 3 more of my NOLA boys, Patrick Shubel Rex Lott, and my old room mate, Keith Vecherelli. It was pretty cool hanging out with them when I wasnt working. It was also amazingly cool to fly around Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hills, which is where the Wright Brothers first took to the skies. Another really cool thing about ALC is that, as a maintainer, you get to do things that no one else in the fleet gets to do. Things like Ground Runs with no cowling installed. Or Fuel Flow checks where you have covers removed and can look straight down through the Talon Bay of the aircraft while flying around at 10,000 feet. You also get to see the Helo in every stage of build-up, from a stripped down frame, to a fully assembled, yet unpainted bird. It was one of the most impressive Maintenance evolutions I was part of, and a big Thank you to Dave for sending me up there. Now, the other cool thing about this is that just as I grew in my career. the H-65 has grown as well. I started out on the HH-65A (or Alpha), and now, as I am wrapping up my career, it is on the MH-65 D (Delta). And as I was in E-City, assisting with the Charlie, felt that I was making a bit of a turn myself. I had been in the Coast Guard for about 12 years at that point, and for those of you who dont know, the 10-15 year mark is when you make the decision to be a lifer, or to move on. I knew I was planing on making a career out of the Coast Guard, but it was around this time that I really decided I would go for 20. And it has been a great experience growing with the 65. There is a small part of me that would have liked to stick around to fly in the Echo, but not that much. So I figure when it shows up here in NOLA, maybe I will swing by for a tour.
Posted on: Tue, 07 Oct 2014 02:53:40 +0000
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