Moody A-10C Phase program gives back flying hours

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Dillian Bamman
  • 23d Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Three members out of the 23d Equipment Maintenance Squadron A-10C Thunderbolt II Phase program have completed more than 100 phase inspections for the 23d Wing in the past four years.

U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Nicholas Tarbox, 23d EMS section chief, Tech. Sgt. Richard Chase, 23d EMS section chief, and Staff Sgt. Carlos David, 23d EMS A-10C inspection section journeyman, all have contributed to the program, either at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., or deployed overseas.

The A-10 phase system is a protocol inspection designed to detect any damages or malfunctions within the aircraft.

"We get about eight days to complete a Phase One inspection, but 10 days to do the more in-depth Phase Two," said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Nicholas Tarbox, 23d EMS section chief. "With each phase we get done, it gives back 500 flying hours to Moody's flying hour program, so 36 phases in a 6 month time span really adds up.

"We have nine different specialties that work on the jets during these phases," he added.

The A-10C has been a part of the Air Force close air support mission since May 1972, so wear-and-tear of the aircraft is bound to occur.

"It's definitely a struggle keeping these jets fixed," said U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Richard Chase, 23d EMS section chief. "They're getting older so we keep finding more cracks and defects, but the Airmen get it done. About 15 Airmen put in the man-hours, per phase, to keep these A-10s flying."

When the 23d EMS deploys, their operations tempo goes up, especially with the flying hours used overseas.

"The ops tempo when we deploy is a lot higher than it is at home," said Tarbox. "On average, we do about 20 phases a year home station, but when I first deployed, we finished 36 phases in six months, which is unheard of.

"I think the Airmen enjoy that high ops tempo when they deploy," he added. "Distractions are significantly lower, so they can focus on getting the mission done."

Senior Airman Zachary Hudson, 23d EMS A-10C inspection section journeyman, agrees with Tarbox, saying that it's easier to focus on the mission in a deployed environment.

"It's somewhat stressful, but not having the distractions we get at home station makes our day-to-day lives fly by," said Hudson.

According to Tarbox, with the amount of flying hours these phases give back to Moody, the 23d EMS continues to get the mission done, no matter the obstacle.

"It gives us a great feeling of accomplishment and pride to be able to intensely inspect these aircraft, fix those discrepancies and give that flying mission back to the 23d WG," said Tarbox.