LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. --
Service members assigned to the 314th Maintenance Squadron were
recognized for an accomplishment not often witnessed in the aircraft
maintenance world Aug. 11, 2016, at Little Rock Air Force Base.
This achievement, commonly known as a Black-Letter Initial,
occurs when an aircraft flies with zero minor discrepancies. Most aircraft fly
with few minor discrepancies that pose little to no effect while in flight.
“I’ve been in the military for 17 years, and I’ve never seen
a Black Letter in my career,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Chad Bond, 314th
Aircraft Maintenance Squadron lead production.
In every aircraft, there are forms where all discrepancies
are written. Those discrepancies are marked by red symbols indicating the
flying status of a specific aircraft by an aircraft inspector.
When there are no red marks, the dedicated crew chief
initials the forms, marking the accomplishment and stating the aircraft is 100
percent ready to fly.
The newest aircraft to achieve this milestone was a 1998
model C-130J Tail No. 1335, one of the oldest aircraft in the 314th Airlift
Wing fleet.
“This aircraft has taken a majority of the training missions
in the 314th AW which is indicated by its estimated flight hours,” said Bond.
“It’s one of the oldest aircraft in our fleet with the highest estimated flight
hours.”
It’s easier to black letter a new aircraft then it is an
older one. The way this aircraft performs, to this day, speaks volumes of the
kind of maintenance the 314th AW maintainers perform, Bond said.
“This is something I’ve never seen in my eight years in the
Air Force,” said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Travis Barnes, 314th Maintenance
Squadron dedicated crew chief of C-130J Tail No. 1335. “It’s an honor to be a
part of this, especially with an aircraft that has so many flying hours.”
Assigned crew chiefs to Tail No. 1335 are: U.S. Air Force Senior
Airman William Autry, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Travis Barnes and U.S. Air
Force Senior Airman Tyler Shanklin.
“Shanklin took the initiative,” Barnes said. “He recognized
that we only had a few maintenance write ups left and took care of it. He put
his blood, sweat and tears into the aircraft for the black letter.”
According to the 314th AW factsheet, the 314th AW provides
the world’s best C-130 Combat Airlift training to maintainers and pilots. Quality
training is what leads to the success of the mission and achievements performed
by the individuals working on the aircraft.
“It is the will of the maintainers and crew chiefs that made
this happen, but there are a lot more moving parts that made this achievement possible,”
Bond said. “It would never happen without the help and support of the 19th
Airlift Wing, the 314th Maintenance Group as a whole and the people of Little
Rock Air Force Base.”