Month: October 2023

Source: United States Navy

Fleet Readiness Center Southeast (FRCSE) inducted its first F135 Power Module (PM) Aug. 24, one of the five major modules that make up the propulsion system on the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter. 

After being designated as a Department of Defense second depot source of repair (DSOR) for the F135 engine, FRCSE quickly began planning for the arrival of its first PM and future sustainment as a second DSOR.  

“The F-35 will be around for a long time, and earning this workload creates a unique opportunity for the depot to firmly assert its place within the Naval Aviation Enterprise (NAE),” said FRCSE’s Commanding Officer Capt. Al Palmer. “The intent for this engine work is to begin within FRCSE’s Crinkley Engine Facility and then expand as other support facilities are created. Seeing an effort of this enormity come to fruition takes a dedicated team of professionals. Among many other invaluable partnerships, the experts at Pratt & Whitney (P&W) and the Joint Program Office (JPO) were vital to both receiving the work and learning the skills needed to maintain it.”

To support this new engine and its modules, artisans must undergo extensive training. With help from Heavy Maintenance Center (HMC) Tinker Air Force Base (AFB) and West Palm Beach P&W, some training has already been conducted. However, an additional three-phase P&W training and maintenance qualification and certification process, which will enhance and streamline the process for FRC Southeast personnel, has also kicked off onsite at the command.  

The training encompasses classroom and on-the-job (OTJ) experience as artisans learn and familiarize themselves with the PM and its associated mini modules (MMs) – the high-pressure compressor, high-pressure turbine, low-pressure turbine and diffuser combustor.

“Many different competencies will be involved with F135 training,” said Carl Cuppy, FRCSE’s Business Development Office Engine Lead. “Mechanics, inspectors and quality assurance personnel will all participate in the training. During this time, groups will develop the muscle memory necessary to overhaul the F135 power module successfully. Each group will perform multiple iterations of disassembly and assembly with the support of Pratt & Whitney training specialists.” 

While the process will be rigorous and lengthy, it’s a vital part of gaining the necessary proficiencies. Fortunately, all personnel undergoing the training are seasoned experts with aircraft engine experience – having worked on platforms like the F414 and F404, the muscle behind the F/A-18 Super Hornet and Hornet respectively, the TF34 which powers the Air Force’s A-10 Warthog, and the J52, which was used in the EA-6B Prowler.

The first two training phases will focus on classroom and practical skills. The first was approximately two weeks long and taught artisans P&W’s digital management system for the engine.

During OJT, or the second phase, artisans will begin working with the PM, its MMs and each subcomponent. P&W trainers will work side-by-side with FRC Southeast personnel. 

“The Power Module is its own specialty, and each mini module is its own specialty,” said Chadwick Boyd, FRCSE industrial engineer and F135 capability establishment team member. “Artisans will specialize in a mini module and only be tested on their specialty. However, there will be opportunities to cross-train.”

OJT will be broken into each MM’s subcomponents, with completion of each of the four areas contingent on the amount and complexity of its subcomponents. Completion dates for each MM training are expected between February and April 2024, and the PM training will conclude by June 2024.

Once the classroom and practical OJT phases are complete, qualification and certification will be the final step. This involves a collective skills assessment, in which P&W evaluators will determine whether the command can achieve Initial Depot Capability (IDC). As part of the assessment, artisans will be required to completely disassemble and reassemble the power module without guidance or assistance. Earning the IDC will demonstrate that FRCSE can perform all maintenance actions on this specific section of the F135.

“The first power module will be disassembled into mini modules, or sub-assemblies, used for training on those specific components,” Cuppy said. “The second power module will be used for the disassembly and assembly training for the PM. Both PMs will be assembled into production units and eventually installed in F-35 aircraft within the international enterprise.”

The second F135 PM was delivered to FRCSE on Aug. 28.

IDC assessment for MMs are scheduled between September and October 2024, and between March and April 2025 for PMs.   

FRCSE has optimized space in its Crinkley Engine Facility complex to make room for the F135 product line, but that is far from all that the organization is doing to support this large-scale effort. After certification, F135 artisans will conduct the MM and PM work in designated areas within the facility called “cells.” The long-term plan is to have nine PM cells and 22 mini module cells.

As the program ramps up in the coming years, the command will build new facilities via military construction (MILCON) projects to support the increased workload.

“FRCSE is in the design review process for a state-of-the-art 250,000-square-foot MILCON facility constructed specifically to house the F135 maintenance shops and support personnel,” Cuppy said. “Further, we expect our local (engine) test cell project to be commissioned by this time, which will allow FRCSE to become a one-stop-shop for F135 maintenance, repair and overall.”

Cuppy said the command anticipates engine production to ramp up through 2034 to the maximum production requirement – equivalent to about 600 MMs and 120 PMs annually, correlating to about 600,000 man-hours. 

“We will start regular inductions in 2024, and we expect to have every component of the F135 Navy and Air Force variants by 2029,” Cuppy said. “During that time, we will begin training for the fan, augmenter and nozzle modules.”

About Fleet Readiness Center Southeast

Fleet Readiness Center Southeast (FRCSE) is Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia’s largest maintenance, repair, overhaul and technical services provider, employing approximately 5,000 civilian, military and contract workers. With annual revenue exceeding $1 billion, the organization serves as an integral part of the greater U.S. Navy, Naval Air Systems Command, and Commander, Fleet Readiness Centers by maintaining the combat airpower for America’s military. 

Source: United States Navy

New position descriptions developed at Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) are bringing the depot in line with commercial industry hiring practices and allowing for increased flexibility in employee professional development, all with an eye on improving efficiency and utilization.

FRCE worked hand-in-hand with local human resources professionals and higher-echelon personnel agencies including the Navy’s Office of Civilian Human Resources and the federal Office of Personnel Management, along with union representatives and training experts, to become the first Defense Department depot to develop mixed trade aircraft mechanic positions. These new mixed trade positions allows aircraft maintainers at FRCE to gain qualification in multiple areas of expertise, where previous job descriptions locked them into just one. Employees working under the new mixed trade initiative will develop a broad skill set that can encompass airframes, sheet metal, electrical and composites.

“It only makes sense to move FRC East in a direction that has been the industry standard for many years now,” said Tina Rowe, head of the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul Production Department (MRO-P) at FRCE. “To remain competitive in this industry, as part of the defense organic industrial base, we must continue seeking change and finding better ways to do businesses. In this case, that means moving away from trade-based position descriptions and giving our workforce the opportunity to use all of their talents to benefit our nation’s military aviators, instead of pigeonholing them into just one area.”

Andrew Rock, who currently serves as head of the depot’s Engine Branch and was instrumental in the switch, said the end goal of the new position description is increased efficiency and utilization by decreasing downtime.

“In the end, it can’t help but boost efficiency and utilization because now one aircraft maintenance professional will be able to do all facets of a task instead of waiting on another trade,” Rock explained. “Reducing the number of interruptions to the maintenance process can’t help but improve our turnaround times and get the aircraft back to the mission even faster than before.”

Getting the aircraft maintainers qualified in multiple trades requires a significant amount of on-the-job training, Rock said,  Even with robust training plans and intensive learning, not every mixed trade artisan is going to be qualified in every trade – and that’s to be expected, Rock said.

“Now we get to figure out what our new hires are good at, because they’re in a training program that basically encompasses all of the aircraft trades, and they will shine in the areas where they should shine,” he said. “We don’t expect anybody to come in and be stellar at all the trades – that could happen because we do have people with the drive and aptitude to do that, but it wouldn’t be the norm. The important part is that they will be have the opportunity to qualify in all of the trades, and will be qualified in the areas in which they have demonstrated proficiency.”

The mixed trade initiative at FRCE began its rollout on the V-22 aircraft line. Rock, the former head of the V-22 Branch, said the new position description is a natural extension of the “beginning-to-end” concept the line instituted on the V-22 line a few years back, where one cross-disciplinary team of artisans worked an aircraft from its induction at the depot through to its return to the Fleet.

“With that ‘beginning-to-end’ concept, we put a work leader who was an air framer with a strong sheet metal mechanic and a strong electrician and they run that plane from start to finish,” he explained. “It doesn’t matter what phase the aircraft is in or what work they are doing with it, the entire team worked on the aircraft and it was a true team effort to get it across the finish line. When we first started working this way, it was a new concept.

“This new mixed trade position description on the aircraft lines will allow us to continue doing this same thing,” Rock continued. “Eventually, this way of doing business won’t be new, but will be second nature to the entire workforce.”

Don McLean, an overhaul and repair supervisor on the V-22 line, said the change has been generally well-received within the workforce.

“There are a lot of folks here who are excited about the opportunity to get their hands dirty in another part of the process,” he said. “We have a lot of smart people who now have the opportunity to grow in their jobs, and we have the flexibility to find the place in which they really excel. Your job now isn’t to learn just one trade, but you need to be proficient at multiple things.”

McLean said he’s already had two former sheet metal workers express an interest in composite work, with one of the artisans already qualifying to perform general basic composite repairs.

“That artisan has already been picking up a lot of the work, and we’re working to introduce him to some other trade skills, as well,” McLean said. “The intent is to get all of our workforce qualified in multiple trades.

“I know that, as a sheet metal mechanic, when I got promoted to supervisor I had to work with electricians and air framers and all those other trades, and I really had to lean on coworkers to help me understand where exactly the whole maintenance process was going,” McLean continued. “With these new artisans, once they start moving up in the ranks, they’re already going to know what each step entails from each trade and it’s going to benefit everyone in the long run.”

In addition to increasing efficiency on the production environment, the wider knowledge base and broader skill set will benefit the depot in other ways as the mixed trade initiative matures, said Allen Williamson, V-22 branch head.

“It extends beyond the floor,” he said. “We’re really good at promoting from within, so when you have an artisan leave the production line to go work as an in-service repair planner, an industrial engineering technician or in the business office, they’re going to have a holistic understanding of aviation maintenance. That will benefit the customer, as well.”

Other industrial facilities across the Defense Department have taken notice and begun reaching out to see how they can make the change to mixed trade positions, Rock noted.

“I was recently on a phone call with an Air Force facility that wanted to gather some of our lessons learned and to pick our brains and see how we cracked the code on this,” he said. “They’re excited that we’ve done it, and now they hope to benefit from it, too.”

Rowe said the team will continue working to develop the mixed trade concept and expand it to additional positions beyond the aircraft lines, within MRO-P.

Watching FRCE make big changes to the way the depot does businesses has been exciting, Williamson noted.

“We have become a facility where we institute a change, we monitor that change, and then we make adjustments based on that feedback,” he said. “It’s a great time to work here at the depot, with all the changes that we’re making in order to bring ourselves up to speed with commercial industry.”

FRCE is North Carolina’s largest maintenance, repair, overhaul and technical services provider, with more than 4,000 civilian, military and contract workers. Its annual revenue exceeds $1 billion. The depot provides service to the fleet while functioning as an integral part of the greater U.S. Navy; Naval Air Systems Command; and Commander, Fleet Readiness Centers.

Source: United States Navy

The largest annual multinational humanitarian assistance and disaster relief preparedness mission conducted in the Indo-Pacific, Pacific Partnership enables participants, including United States and Papua New Guinean personnel, to work together to enhance disaster response capabilities and foster new and enduring friendships.

“I am beyond grateful to the government of Papua New Guinea for welcoming Pacific Partnership into their community,” said U.S. Navy Capt. Claudine Caluori. “The achievements made in Wewak and Port Moresby is a testament of both the ability of our people and the strength of our countries’ bond. I could not be more proud of this mission and our partnership.”

While in Papua New Guinea, the medical team conducted a total of 42 engagements. The team, consisting of U.S., Papua New Guinean, Australian, and Japanese personnel, participated in a variety of events in the areas of mental, women’s, and community health; emergency management; dental; veterinary; medical side-by-sides; nurse trainings; and a five-day humanitarian assistance and disaster relief symposium in Port Moresby. There were a total 863 community health patients, 689 optometry patients, 574 glucose readings, 300 prescriptions dispensed, 188 malaria point of care testing 350 dental patients, and 115 tooth extractions.

The Pacific Partnership team also provided focused support to address critical infrastructure concerns. A total of 18 Seabees were joined by their Papua New Guinea Defense Force counterparts to take on the repairs of a water collection system at Mongniol Primary School, impacting the educational environment for over a thousand third to eighth grade students and their teachers. On Oct. 19, Mongniol leadership invited Capt. Caluori and Katherine Monahan, U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires for Papua New Guinea to the school for the official unveiling of the completed water system.

“As we move forward, let us not see these events end as a closure but as a stepping stone toward a deeper partnership and friendship between the United states and Papua New Guinea,” said Monahan. “Let the legacy of Pacific Partnership continue to inspire us to reach out and help those in need, not just in the pacific, but wherever help is required.”

Pacific Partnership 2023 will conduct mission stops throughout the South Pacific Islands.

For more information about Pacific Partnership  visit www.facebook.com/pacificpartnership, www.instagram.com/pacific_partnership/ or https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/C-LGWP. Pacific Partnership public affairs can be reached via email at publicaffairs.pp23@gmail.com.

Source: United States Navy

Newport, R.I. – Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti traveled to Newport, R.I., to tour Navy facilities and visit with Sailors and defense industry leaders, Oct. 19.

Franchetti started her trip at General Dynamics Electric Boat, Quonset Point, where she received updates from company leadership on submarine manufacturing, modular construction, and outfitting for future Columbia and Virginia-class submarines.

The Columbia-class will replace the Ohio-class as the Navy’s contribution to the nuclear triad, which remains the most survivable leg of the U.S. strategic nuclear deterrent force.

“Ensuring that these submarines are produced on time and on budget is a national strategic imperative,” said Franchetti.  “The Navy is 100% committed to partnering with Congress, industry, and the New England community to fulfill this mission.” 

Franchetti then traveled to Naval Station Newport to speak with prospective command master chiefs at the Navy Leadership and Ethics Center.

“This is an exciting time to be in the Navy and to lead our teams operating around the world,” she said.  “As you prepare for the next level of leadership, I expect all of you to view everything through a warfighting lens and to remember that our people are the foundation of our warfighting effectiveness.” 

Her next stop was to the Navy Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC), where she met with NUWC scientists, engineers, and leadership to discuss multiple initiatives taking place in Newport, to include advanced communication techniques for submarines at depth known as the Submarine Launched Over the Horizon Buoy.

While at NUWC she was able to see the software that Sailors are currently operating on submarines and discuss the ongoing upgrades to those systems, as well as the Snakehead unmanned underwater vehicle. 

“The NUWC team is developing innovative concepts and cutting-edge technology that will help expand the enduring advantage we have in the undersea domain,” said Franchetti.  “They are finding creative solutions to operational challenges and delivering results at the speed of relevance.”

VCNO’s last stop was at Surface Warfare Schools Command, where she engaged with prospective commanding and executive officers, and observed Sailors training to navigate high-density maritime traffic areas in the schoolhouse simulators.

“As we see in the events of today, our Navy ships are forward and ready, providing options and decision space to our nation’s leaders. Operating them safely is job number one,” Franchetti commented.  “These simulators enable our Sailors, both officer and enlisted, to undergo rigorous, realistic, and repeated training in an environment designed to accelerate their mastery of seamanship.” 

Naval Station Newport is home to 50 different commands and is the Navy’s premier site for training and educating officers, officer candidates, senior enlisted personnel and midshipman candidates into future leaders, as well as testing and evaluating advanced undersea warfare and development systems.

Source: United States Navy

The four personnel from U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) and U.S. Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Unit (USNMRTU) Bahrain provided tactical combat casualty care, shipboard medical programs review and a mass casualty exercise aboard the state-of-the-art French Mistral-class ship, the Egyptian Naval Ship (ENS) Anwar El-Sadat at Ras Al Tin Naval Forces Base.

“This is the first time the Egyptian Naval Forces have granted access to the U.S. Navy, specifically U.S. Navy medical professionals, to their ship,” explained Lt. Freddie Mawanay, the GHE officer at NAVCENT. “It was a pleasure executing GHE serials, and working with the professional medical doctors and nurses was commendable.”

The team operated inside the ship’s hospital medical facility and alongside their Egyptian counterparts to understand their procedures and resources and offered collaboration support during drills.

“I learned about their current operations for mass casualty drills and care for those wounded in combat,” said Lt.j.g. Anna Walker, a native of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and a staff nurse with USNMTRU Bahrain. “We had thorough discussions and brainstormed ideas to enhance their shipboard casualty plan.”

While the team had some minor challenges with regards to language and cultural barriers, they began to communicate much easier over time. By strengthening their professional relationship with Egypt, they created lifelong memories with an unforgettable experience.

“The most memorable thing about the GHE was the eagerness to learn from both our team and the foreign militaries,” reflected Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Joseph Wanda, a native of Plano, Illinois, and a command pay and personnel administrator at USNMTRU Bahrain. “We also had personnel from departments that had little-to-no medical knowledge wanting to attend and learn skills.”

The experience during the exercise opened more opportunities for the U.S. and Egyptian medical teams to collaborate and plan for future emergency and trauma management events and programs.

“Our partner has expressed further interest in GHEs to build upon these initial efforts to enhance their proficiencies,” concluded Mawanay. “We hope to have an exchange aboard a U.S. vessel to provide an availability for the Egyptian team to also observe and understand our shipboard medical capabilities.”

Exercise Bright Star is the oldest multilateral military exercise in the Middle East and Africa first occurring in 1980. Bright Star 2023 was jointly led by the Egyptian Armed Forces and those from the U.S. Central Command and is designed to enhance interoperability among the 34 participating nations and support their ability to confront security and military challenges at regional and international levels.

USNMRTU Bahrain, a unit of U.S. Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command (NMRTC) Sigonella, provides support to 5,000 enrolled beneficiaries and 15,000 transient forces. NMRTC Sigonella and its units in Bahrain and Souda Bay provide high-performing, fully mission-ready medical and dental care in three geographically dispersed populations of personnel assigned to U.S. Naval Air Station (NAS) Sigonella, U.S. Naval Support Activity (NSA) Bahrain, NSA Souda Bay, headquarters staff of CENTCOM, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as well as ships transiting the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility.

Naval Medical Forces Atlantic, headquartered in Portsmouth, Virginia, delivers operationally focused medical expertise and capabilities to meet Fleet, Marine and Joint Force requirements by providing equipment, sustainment and maintenance of medical forces during combat operations and public health crises. NMFL provides oversight for 21 NMRTCs, logistics, and public health and dental services throughout the U.S. East Coast, U.S. Gulf Coast, Cuba, Europe, and the Middle East.

Navy Medicine – represented by more than 44,000 highly-trained military and civilian health care professionals – provides enduring expeditionary medical support to the warfighter on, below, and above the sea, and ashore.