Truckin' on Aug 2013

8/22/2019 Truckin' on Aug 2013

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Disclaimer: Truckin On is an unofficial newsletter published every month in the interest of serving Air Force active duty, civilian and retired vehicle operations

maintenance personnel. Articles submitted by its contributors are not to be considered official statements by the U.S. Air Force.

1 Aug 2013

SPECIAL POINTSOF

INTEREST:

THE SAFEST BETIN

VEGASPG 13

OLVIMSLEGEND &

LEGACY

PG 4

5

Inside this issue:

Futuristic Chinese

Bus PG 3AF Vehicle News PG 6Allied Trades PG 7Veh Mx Shops PG 8A Tiring Ordeal PG 910

YouTube/MotorWeekVideo PG 10

TRUCKIN ONDedicated to the Men and Women

ofAF Vehicle Operations & Maintenance Past, Present, and Future

The Safest Bet in Vegas!

by Kevin Thomas, MSgt (2T3)

99th Logistics Readiness Squadron

Las Vegas: The city where fortunes can

be made or lost. Sin City is best known

for its awesome night life and culture of

anything goes, and its litany ofgambling opportunities. Whats not well

known, however, is that a few miles north

of the world famous Las Vegas Strip is

Nellis Air Force Base and the 99th

Logistics Readiness Squadron (LRS)

Vehicle Management Flight!

Nestled in the far northeast end of the

Las Vegas valley is Nellis Air Force

Base, home of the 99th and 57th Wings.

Its here where the men and women of

the 99th Logistics Readiness Squadron

Vehicle Maintenance Flight call home,

and its here where they keep the

mission on point every day!

Comprised of 91 military personnel and

27 civilian work leaders and technicians,

the vehicle management crew manages

a fleet of over 1,800 vehicles and

maintains a fleet of over 1,200 vehicles

ensuring mission readiness, and keeping

aircraft flying every day! Without us,

pilots are pedestrians, and everyone on

base would become an ABU-wearing

bicycle gang!

Forget I said that: with sequestration in

full swing, I dont want to put ideas in

anyones head.

Just over 10 years ago the 99 LRS

Vehicle Management Flight was

considered one of the least desirable

assignments in the vehicle maintenance

community. Because of our reputationwe were known as a meat grinder, a true

sweat factory of all the vehicle

maintenance flights; it was an

assignment most of us avoided.

The facilities were old and extremely

undersized for a large fleet of 1.2K

vehicles. Anything larger than a 60K

aircraft loader or 44 passenger bus was

just too big to repair inside the shop, so

work was done outside. In many areas

of the world this may not be a big issue,

but when you consider the extreme heat

of 110+ degrees during the summer

months, working outside was particularly

hazardous to our mechanics.

Now add in a numbered air force, five

wings, 14 groups and 70+ units with

diverse missions along with the average

1,500 personnel TDY to Nellis every day

of the year for the numerous RED,

GREEN and SILVER FLAG exercises

Nellis is famous forand you get the

picture of a poor facility with a huge

workload.

SSgt Gigliotti inspects k-loader

Old VM facility


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1 Aug 2013

Well times have changed in the last 10

years. In 2004, we were able to increase

our manning to support FLAG exercises

by 20+ mechanics, and with the

assistance of Senator Harry Reid, we

received funding for our new maintenance

facility and to renovate the existing facility

as well.

In January 2006 we moved into a brand

new state of the art 80K square feet

building. We still have the hectic pace

that comes with managing a massive fleetand ensuring our customers from Nellis,

Creech, Ft Irwin and from all across the

3.6M acre Nevada Test and Training

Range are supported to the best of our

ability.

However, now we do it in a modern facility

with the space we need to operate

efficiently.

Now that you know a little about the

complexity and history of the 99 LRS VM

flight, let me tell you about how

maintaining a massive fleet like this is

possible.

At Nellis, under the leadership of our

Flight Chief, retired Chief Master Sergeant

Honolito Hoey Directo, our Vehicle Fleet

Manager, Chief Master Sergeant Roman

Jaye and our Vehicle Management

Superintendent, Senior Master Sergeant

Martin Bedford, the VM flight is divided

into 4 Vehicle Repair Teams with each

team led by a retired military member.

Heres how they are comprised: Team 1

is led by retired Master Sergeant Leonard

Heuring.

Mr. Heuring and his shop service mainly

general purpose assets, as well as the

huge bus fleet that Nellis utilizes. In

addition, they also perform alignments on

anything that can be aligned, and know a

lot about keeping things cold (they service

air conditioning).

The airmen in Team 1 also service allmilitary designed vehicles on Nellis. They

perform repairs ranging from oil changes

to engine overhauls to full electrical

system refurbishments, all with quality

and style!

Also, Team 1 is responsible for installing

the AFs new AIM2 system into the entire

fleet. This system will allow for vehicle

data to be remotely accessed from

several points around the base, and will

help result in better mileage tracking on

vehicles, and eliminate countless

man-hours of data retrieval.

If it takes our personnel up and down the

road, the folks in Team 1 make sure it

rolls!

Vehicle Team 2 is led by retired Senior

Master Sergeant Ray Heick, and they

handle all of our special purpose vehicles.

From bobtails to sweepers, forklifts to

construction equipment, if its big and

belongs on Nellis, these folks fix it.

Team 2 is responsible for keeping all of

our aircraft tow and base maintenance

fleet rolling.

Like their Team 1 counterparts, they do

any and all level of repairs, and specialize

in hydraulic system repairs and also

house our machine and welding shops. In

addition to fixing all the heavy stuff, they

service a large fleet of material handling

equipment; this includes forklifts of all

sizes, and aircraft cargo loaders

(K-loaders).

Also, this is where you will find our fire

truck technicians, keeping the Nellis

runway open and families safe. Lastly,

Team 2 is also home to our refueling

mechanics.

Nellis VM was one of the first flights to

re-integrate all refueling maintenance

operations fully back into VM from our

fuel-pumping POL brethren.

These folks keep our huge fleet of 50+

refueling assets mission ready, andassisted our POL folks to win the

American Petroleum Institute trophy for

Best Fuels Flight in the Air Force for

2012.

Vehicle Team 3 is led by retired Master

Sergeant Johnny Gaines, and is the home

of our customer service (CSC) team,

allied trades (AT) folks, and our tire and

emissions section.

The CSC folks in-check all vehicles

entering the shops, and handle anything

that can be done in under two hours via

minor maintenance. They also serve as

the quality control function to ensure the

VM teams are consistently putting out

high quality work.

In addition, we have one of the few

stateside fully functioning AT sections,

handling anything from minor paint and

accident repairs to full paint and major

accident repairs.

New VM facility

A1C Managaya & A1C Basa adjust valves

2


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1 Aug 2013

The tire shop airmen do anything from

passenger tires to huge fire truck tires,

and they utilize recapped tires for any and

all vehicles they can.

Our emissions shop performs testing on

all gas and diesel powered over-the-road

assets. We recently installed a new dyno

machine, ensuring all of our assets meet

Nevada state emissions standards!

Last, but certainly not least, is Team 4, led

by retired Senior Master Sergeant KellyKeebler who recently won the 2013 GSA

Fleet Manager of the Year Award

congratulations Kelly! This team is home

to our vehicle management and analysis

(VM&A) section, as well as our materiel

control folks. The VM&A section handles

all of our work order processing, fleet

management, scheduling for all vehicles,

and keeps our vehicle records accurate

and up to date.

The materiel control section orders all of

our parts, handles all of our chemical

authorizations, controls our tool programs,

and makes it rain by handling our budget

as well!

Lastly, the flight support section keeps us

out of jail by handling all our safety and

environmental compliance issues, as well

as keeping our operating instructions up

to date.

This team is our back-room office folks,

and they are as much a part of our

success as any wrench-turner!

Our aforementioned success is pretty

darn impressive, to say the least! In

addition to consistently keeping ourvehicle-in-commission (VIC) rate at over

90 percent for five straight years, the VM

flight is in no small part responsible for the

99 LRS capturing the 2012 Vern Orr

Award, the POL flight capturing the 2012

Air Combat Command Drake Award for

Best Fuels Flight in ACC, and the

crowning jewel: Winning the prestigious

2012 General Warren R. Carter Order of

the Daedalian Award.

This award recognizes the 99 LRS as

being the Best Logistics Readiness

Squadron in the entire Air Force for 2012!

So, the next time you come to Vegas, and

are looking to strike it rich, you can try

your hand at blackjack, craps, or any of

the other many games the casinos have

to offer.

However, the safest bet in town is still that

the men and women of the 99 LRS

Vehicle Management Flight who will be

keeping Nellis AFB rolling and ready to

fight!

WHO DRIVES THE MISSIONLGRV!!!WHO DRIVES THE MISSIONLGRV!!!WHO DRIVES THE MISSIONLGRV!!!

Futuristic Chinese Bus...truly amazing!

1 Aug 2013A bus you have to see to believe...

Submitted by Roger Storman, SMSgt (Ret/2T3)

CMSgt (Ret) Don Sanders sent me a YouTube link of a futuristic

bus and after watching it, I thought it was fascinating.

News of this bus first surfaced in Aug 2010, so our article is

obviously dated. I couldnt find any current information on it;

nevertheless, I wanted to share the video with you.

A company in southern China, Shenzhen Huashi Future Parking

Equipment, has developed an odd-looking, extra-wide and

extra-tall vehicle that can carry up to 1,200 passengers.

The bus is 20 feet wide and is to be powered by a combination

of municipal electricity and solar power.You can read the full article from an Aug 17, 2010 edition of the

New York Times business page at the following link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/18/business/

global/18bus.html?_r=0To truly appreciate it, however, check out the concept video on

YouTube at the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epXiTsPXOpkThanks, Sandy!

New VM facility

3
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/18/business/global/18bus.html?_r=0http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/18/business/global/18bus.html?_r=0http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/18/business/global/18bus.html?_r=0http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epXiTsPXOpkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epXiTsPXOpkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epXiTsPXOpkhttp://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/18/business/global/18bus.html?_r=0http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/18/business/global/18bus.html?_r=0


4/10

Vehicle data collection pioneers

recall the early days

by Larry Kearns, Col (Ret) and

Bob Wiley, MSgt/GM-14 (Ret)

Editors Comments: In March 2013 Joe

Dow gave us an update on Enterprise

Fleet Management and stated VEMSO

had started an OLVIMS tech refresh,

which would convert our legacy OLVIMS

to a web-based program, but not with

much more capability than what we have

today.

Upon reading this, I thought about a time

before desktop computers when we used,

calculators, keypunch machines, and

central data processing. It made me

curious about how VIMS and OLVIMS

began. Even though I was around at the

time, I wasnt sure.

So, I asked Bob Wiley about it and, with

some misgivings, he provided me part ofthe necessary background for this article,

which turned out to be a wealth of

information. He was personally involved

with the development of VIMS and

OLVIMS.

Col Larry Kearns then picked up on this

story and offered additional input, also

valuable information. He too was involved

with developing this legacy program.

This is their story in their own words and

based entirely on memory. If its not

100% accurate in terms of dates andsequence of events, please bear with

them. Its the closest we have to a

documented history of our career field.

Bob Wiley: Ken Semler and Lyle Njos

were early players in VIMS. When I first

met Ken, he was in civil service at the Air

Force Data Systems Design Center

(AFDSDC) Gunter AFB, AL. Yeah, back

then Gunter was an AF base.

If I recall correctly, Kens background had

been in aircraft maintenance, or maybe

maintenance control, but having to do with

automated data entry; he worked that

business for about seven years at Wright-

Patterson before going to Gunter into the

vehicle business.

Back in those days, SAC was a very

forward leaning command, in on cuttingedge stuff, and thats how I believe Lyle

became involved in VIMS early on,

perhaps through the Pilot Program SAC

had going. And while I dont know when

or where their close friendship began, I do

know they were tight buddies.

In its earlier days, VIMS was almost a

clone of the aircraft maintenance system,

and that explains the technical order, T.O.

00-25-06-6-1, which described what data

elements were to be captured. The data

elements and code-set were so detailed,

so onerous that maintainers had to carry a

copy of the T.O. in their pocket so they

could reference the codes they needed for

work order entry. Fortunately the T.O.

was designed to be pocket-sized.

I cant recall all the detail/codes, for sure,

but each work order job was written on

the work order, then as work progressed,

codes such as: how malfunctioned, when

discovered, and action taken were

entered. That level of detail was deemed

necessary to pinpoint what specifically

was wrong, and what specifically was

done about it, when, how, and by whom.

So when a deficiency was entered on the

work order, someone had to find the

correct code to use under each of the

coded entries, i.e., how malfunctioned,

when discovered, action taken, etc. And

each of those code-headings had many,

many codes from which to choose.

The punch card data was taken to data

automation on-base for processing, and

that processing produced management

reports for vehicle maintenance and for

quarterly reporting (I think it was called

the K-14) to MAJCOMs.

As best I can recall, a whole lot of this

super-detailed vehicle maintenance data

capture was going on long before therewas any system to receive it, no

CAFVIMS for example, so each vehicle

maintenance org was told to store the

punch cards until there was someplace to

send em. Meanwhile, folks at Wright-

Patterson were working with Air Staff and

the automators at Robins to develop what

ultimately became CAFVIMS.And by the

time CAFVIMS came along, there was

determined to be more maintenance detail

being collected/reported than was

deemed necessary.As a consequence,

much of that aircraft-like detail that was

being captured was trimmed down to a

more reasonable and usable level.

And I recall that before full-blown

CAFVIMS became fully capable,

MAJCOM VIMS data found its way to

Robins AFB for AF consolidation for such

needs as vehicle buy and budgeting

decisions. Believe it or not, the earliest

annual CAFVIMS-like data was derived

mostly by small cadres of RR&C, MC&A

troops (I participated in almost all of em)handpicked by the MAJCOMs and Air

Staff (Ken Semler, specifically) to come

together at Wright-Patterson each year to

hand-massage the annualized MAJCOM

VIMS data into a consolidated annual AF

VIMS report.

And a whole lot of the number-crunching

was done by hand on conventional

calculators using data from stacks and

stacks of computer listings. Cont. on Pg 5

OLVIMSlegend & legacy1 Aug 2013

4


5/10

Then Ken Semler came up with a bright

idea: rather than Robins sending the

computer listings to Wright-Patterson for

hand-massaging into AF reports, the

cadre of folks would then go to Robins to

do that.

Meanwhile Air Staff (mostly Semler) kept

pressing the Warner Robins automators

to produce usable systems that would

negate all the hand-massaging that had

been going on for years. The work was

being done, but incrementally.

So in the latter years preceding full-blown

CAFVIMS, smaller cadres of folks could

be used to develop the AF-level reports,

until we got to a point where almost all of

the data crunching was done by

computer, necessitating that only three,

and then two folks had to meet at Robins

to evaluate/validate the annual AF-level

reports.

And while the VIMs-to

-CAFVIMS and

CAFVIMS-to-PRIBUY systems were

being developed and tweaked, in addition

to VIMS and PRIBUY, the Gunter Data

Systems Design Center folks were busily

engaged in developing OLVIMS to

replace VIMS. OLVIMS would eliminate

the use of keypunch cards and

mostly manually produced and hand

massaged reports, and all of the time

lapses common with standalone systems.

OLVIMS was at one time prioritized to

receive the additional external resources,

i.e., Accounting & Finance and Communi-

cations services, the transporters would

need for their on-line system development

from the data systems center. And just as

the vehicle division OLVIMS group was

gearing up in earnest, the higher-ups

reprioritized, and determined those

external resources needed to be

redirected to the development of an

on-line accounting & finance/contracting/

procurement system.

The vehicle division kept improving and

tweaking OLVIMS for the day they would

get the green light for OLVIMS

implementation. When that day finally

rolled around, a small cadre of Design

Center folks headed to Seymour Johnson

AFB for its initial launch in a test mode.

In addition to transporters, the test

employed automators, finance folks, and

communicators.

Terminals had to be putin place, data lines had to be strung and

hooked up, and technicians had to be on

hand for anticipated tweaking as the test

progressed.

The Seymour Johnson test uncovered

weaknesses and developed fixes for

some of those; other fixes would have to

be attended to back at Gunter.and the

work continued.

Col Kearns: The only thing I feelthats

missing from Bobs account is the torture

that so many had to endure whileOLVIMS was brought to life. The

development of this massive change

brought together a cadre of vehicle types

who were visionaries and dedicated to

this program development. I was proud to

be included into such a group that

included; Ken, Lyle, Bob, Jim McAllister,

and Colonel Jack Reidy.

Not only did the AF gain by this product,

but lifelong professional and personal

friendships developed and continue

through today. It is a toss-up to me as

to who was the real father of modern

vehicle maintenance. I would probably

give the edge to Lyle just because of

the years that I was allowed to study

with him at our beloved SAC.Dont put your SAC pocket shields away

quite yet.SAC will rise again!

A lot of people worked very hard and were

criticized by disbelievers, including IG

teams.

Hours of working the development of code

to explain problems and action taken

entered into specialized punch cards and

ultimately producing meaningful manage-

ment reportsprobably just more of an

indication of what might be possible in the

future with the advent of computeriza-

tion. So many opportunities for error

use the wrong card, input incorrect code,

submit punch card out of sequence andstart all over again.boxes of expended

punch cardshow many forests were

depleted by our efforts?!

Later the effort was expanded to include

the automation of Vehicle Operations. I

got to spend quite a bit of time with a guy

named Andy McIntire in the bowels of an

abandoned government, wooden building

in Marylandmapping each action taken

by all operations within the management

and operation of the vehicle fleet. Day

after day in the basement of this building

that had weeds growing in through the

wallsAndy understood the process of

flow planning all the actions and I knew

how to get him from beginnings to the

endsnot a bad team.

A small group of folks who believed that

the system could be developed and

believed in one another offered up the

beginnings of the real-time system we

have today in vehicle management.

Warner Robins, while often criticized, put

their hearts into the support of this project

and expanded it to promote managementtools for all fleet managersOps and

Maintenance.

If ever an award was to be named in

honor of someone in the vehicle

management world, I would have to

vote for Ken Semler and Lyle Njos.

Editors Comment: Just to put this story

into context, the timeframe started about

1970 and actually continues today.

OLVIMSlegend & legacy1 Aug 2013

5


6/10

Vehicle Ops & Mx featured in the news

submitted by Roger Storman, SMSgt (Ret/2T3)

These stories are from Air Force News sources published in

June and July. The stories can be viewed in their entirety on

their respective websites.

100th LRS Airmen ensure vehicles are roadworthy while

deployed:http://www.mildenhall.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123353768

Greening Tinker: Base buys 8 CNG pickups

http://www.tinker.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123355649

Vehicle maintenance keeps Misawa mobile

http://www.pacaf.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354075

18th LRS technicians keep fire trucks mission ready

http://www.pacaf.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354675

Forklift operators take half-day to focus on safetyhttp://www.usafe.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354724

6

AF Vehicle Newsaround the globe

1 Aug 2013
http://www.mildenhall.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123353768http://www.mildenhall.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123353768http://www.tinker.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123355649http://www.tinker.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123355649http://www.pacaf.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354075http://www.pacaf.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354075http://www.pacaf.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354675http://www.pacaf.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354675http://www.usafe.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354724http://www.usafe.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354724http://www.usafe.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354724http://www.pacaf.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354675http://www.pacaf.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123354075http://www.tinker.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123355649http://www.mildenhall.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123353768


7/10

1 Aug 2013Allied Trades...a vanishing breedAllied Trades...a vanishing breedAllied Trades...a vanishing breed

The boys who make the noise-

no longer a specialized skill

by Roger Storman, SMSgt (Ret/2T3)

I think most will agree that the noisiest

shop in vehicle management is allied

trades; its just the nature of the beast.

However, noise to one person can sound

like music to another. I know it did to me.

I never acquired the skills to do body

work, painting, welding, etc., but I always

admired those who could. These

craftsmen were as close to being artists

as we ever had in vehicle maintenance.

Ive seen these technicians fabricate

whole body panels out of sheet metal and

turn what looked like a totally wrecked

vehicle into a new one just by cutting,

pounding, bending, shaping, welding, and

paintingtruly amazing!

Although allied trades shops are still a

part of Air Force vehicle management,

this AFSC as a specialized career field no

longer exists. It has been incorporated

into vehicle and vehicular equipment

maintenance, AFSC 2T3X1.

This multi-purpose vehicle specialty code,

formerly known as GP, now includes

military and commercial design general

and special purpose, base maintenance,

aircraft and equipment towing vehicles,

and vehicular equipment. Required skills

include allied trades or body shop

specialties.

Times have changed. In years past

airmen selected for this specialized career

field trained with the Army at Aberdeen

Proving Ground, Maryland. This is no

longer the case.

The Det at Port Hueneme has no allied

trades centric training at this time, to

include welding. Requirements are met at

the 5-skill level through CDCs and OJT.

Welding courses are offered at theEurope Transportation Training Center

(ETTC) at Spangdahlem and the Pacific

Transportation Training Center (PTTC) at

Kadena, but thats all.

So, what drove this change? There has

been a huge shift in the composition of

the Air Force vehicle fleet over the last 15

years. The Air Force, at one time, owned

and maintained its entire fleet, but starting

in about 1998 most GP vehicles were

transferred to GSA and leased.

The GP fleet was a large part of what theallied trades technicians maintained.

Since GSA vehicles are wet leased,

theyre maintained off-base at authorized

repair facilities, including accident repair.

This greatly reduced the allied trades

workload.

Furthermore, many vehicle maintenance

managers have elected to contract this

work due to manning shortages and/or

environmental compliance issues.

What concerns me, however, as a former

vehicle maintenance manager, is the

possibility of losing these skills altogether

as the civilian and military workforce

transitions out through retirement and/or

separation.

Hometown USA is not always outside the

gate and there is still a need for these

services. Who then will do the work if we

dont have trained and qualified people?

Ive always thought of allied trades as an

indispensable, core function of vehicle

maintenance. Maintaining an organic

capability in this career field was essential

to me.

Did we, much like refueling maintenance,

act hastily by eliminating this AFSC? Is

on-the-job training sufficient to ensure

multi-purpose mechanics are qualified

and proficient to perform these functions?

These are, of course, rhetorical questions

and offered only as food for thought. Im

sure that vehicle management leaders

have considered these issues and made

the right decision for the times and

circumstances.

However, I cant even imagine walking

through a vehicle maintenance shop at

some future time and place and not

hearing the sounds generated by a body

shop, the smell of a freshly painted

vehicle, or the burn of metal created by a

welding torch. Please tell me it aint so!7


8/10

1 Aug 2013

Is Your Veh Mx Shop a Relic or

Modern Facility?

by Roger Storman, SMSgt (Ret/2T3)

In looking back on more than 40 years of

vehicle maintenance experience, I think

my greatest disappointment is not being

able to effect construction of new facilities.

In fact, I never worked in one either. A lot

of my shops were old aircraft hangars orhistoric facilities.

Two such examples are Clark AB,

Philippines and Hickam AFB, Hawaii. The

facilities at Clark were constructed as

aircraft hangars between 1917-1919 and

were still being used as such when the

Japanese attacked on Dec 8, 1941. The

aerial photo below was taken a few years

prior in 1938.

This same group of hangars was later

converted to the motor pool and were

still in use when we closed the base in

1991.

The next photo of this same area is more

recent (1967) and might look a little more

familiar to those of you who have been

there.

The building at the top center of the photo

is vehicle operations and the vehicle

maintenance managers office was in the

hangar just below it. 3d Trans supported

nearly 2,000 vehicles from these shops.

Although its impossible to tell from either

of these photos, suffice it to say that the

condition of these facilities was far less

than ideal in the early 90s. For example,

grease and oil from decades of use had

saturated concrete floors and the

pavement surrounding some of the shops.

The Hickam AFB vehicle maintenance

complex, although relatively newer, might

have been worse in terms of space,

particularly the special purpose shop.

We upgraded the lighting in this pre-war

facility, but the concrete floor was

severely cracked throughout the shop and

the entrance was barely wide enough for

a 60K loader, not to mention an incline

that left very little ground clearance.

Once the loader was inside the shop, it

couldnt be positioned anywhere except

straight ahead. A lot of work had to be

accomplished outside in the elements as

evidenced by the photo below.

Our multi-purpose shop was an

open-bay facility, which was adequate as

long as it wasnt raining. On days it

rained, however, the wind would blow

water through the work bays.

We submitted paperwork through civil

engineer channels for new facilities, but

when I retired in 2011 it was still making

its way through the funding process with

little hope of success in the foreseeable

future. This is, of course, no longer an AFissue. The Navy now owns these facilities

and will have to deal with replacing them.

I know that no one is going to feel sorry

that I had to suffer at either of these

choice locations, and thats not my point.

I have no complaints whatsoever.

My point is that not only do buildings

decline with age, technology and the

vehicle fleet changes significantly over

time, and what was once adequate in

1938 or even 1967 is not now.

I know its difficult at best to compete forMILCON dollars and I can only imagine

what it must be like now that

sequestration is a way of life.

However, if I were to give one piece of

advice to new superintendents/managers,

it would be make facility replacement a

top priority, if needed. By doing so youll

be taking care of your people and the

mission...even if its not immediate.Hickam AFB Special Purpose Shop

Hickam AFB Multi-Purpose Shop

Clark Field Aircraft Hangars 1938

Clark AB Vehicle Compound 1967

8


9/10

A Tiring Ordeal...It Can Wait

by Brian Poese, CMSgt (Ret/2T3)

Ive heard that while ambition, hard work,

and perseverance almost always pay off

in the long run, procrastination will pay off

immediately. While theres a certain

amount of truth in that statement, Ive

recently relearned that procrastination

also pays off in the long run, and not in a

good way.

This sad story really begins while I wasworking at McConnell AFB, KS and

commuting home to Missouri on week-

ends. One Friday evening my wife was

visiting in another town about 50 miles

from home.

When she was ready to come home, she

discovered she had a flat tire. No big deal

- my nephew quickly changed the tire for

her. On went the donut spare, and shes

on her way. When I got home from

Kansas later that night, she told me about

the tire so I knew what my chore was for

Saturday.

Saturday morning I noticed the spare was

pretty low on air, too. I took the flat out of

the trunk into the garage, plugged the

hole, aired it up, and put it on the car. I

aired up the spare and checked for leaks

but didnt find any.

I didnt think much of the issue as the tire

was 10 years old. I put it back in the

trunk, thinking I need to be more vigilant.

I told my wife it was fixed. She mentioned

the spare shook pretty bad while driving it

home, and I told her it was probably not

balanced right, but it would be fine. No

big deal it can wait.

When I talked to my nephew later, he

mentioned the scissor jack in the car was

pretty flimsy and didnt really want to lift

the car, but hed made it work. Ill buy

one of those little hydraulic roll-around

jacks from Wal-Mart and keep it in the

trunk.

I hate scissor jacks anyway, but it can

wait. I returned to work in Kansas the

next day, and no more tire trouble. At

some point while working at McConnell, I

was at a junk yard and saw a wheel that

was an exact match to the factory wheels

on the car. I bought it and put it in the

trunk, thinking Id put a decent tire on it

and now Id have a real spare, but that

can wait. Hold that thought.

Fast forward 6 months. The car has new

tires on it now. Not the spare, of course,

and I also forgot to tell them to put the

best old one on the extra wheel. One

Thursday morning I came out of the

house to begin my 60 mile, hour-long

daily commute to Kansas City. You

guessed it flat tire.

I went back inside and told my wife the

tire was flat and I was taking the pickup to

work. When I got home, I plugged the

tire.

When I came out on Friday morning, I

checked the tire and it was about 5

pounds low. Id had that happen before

with plugs they lose a little at first but

once they squirm around under load a

little, they seal up and are fine. I topped

off the tire and took off for work. Dont

judge me.

Now the fun begins. I had traveled about

15 miles when the warning chime rang

and Check tire flashed on the dash

computer. Great (not an exact quote).

There is a high school parking lot at the

interchange, so I pulled in to get out the

little air compressor that plugs into thecigarette lighter and air up the tire. Nice

thought. The tire was flat as a pancake.

Great (not an exact quote).

I opened the glove box, pushed the trunk

button, and went to get the spare out.

Dont get ahead of me. About then I was

thinking maybe, just maybe, I should have

checked that spare again after the last

episode.

I first took out the genuine accessory

matching alloy spare wheel. It was, of

course, still naked so I laid it aside. I took

out the lug wrench, donut spare, and

scissor jack. No, the spare wasnt

flat...completelybut it did seem a little

low. No big deal, Id air it up with the little

toy compressor.

I positioned the scissor jack, went around

and set the park brake, and loosened the

lug nuts a turn before I jacked up the car

so the tire wouldnt turn. Miraculously the

tire shop had not used an impact rebuilt

by Tim the Toolman Taylor, and the cute

little foot long lug wrench with the swivel

socket head actually broke them loose

fairly easily. I started cranking the scissor

jack. Wait for it

Just about the time I got the tire off the

ground far enough to remove it, I noticed

the jack didnt seem to be raising the car

anymore. I looked more closely at it and,

as I watched, the scissor jack slowly

twisted and collapsed, bending the

support arms and gently letting the carsettle back down on the flat tire. Great

(not an exact quote).

It didn't hurt anything but now I had no

way to get the tire off. No big deal. There

was a gas station just across the highway;

maybe I could borrow a jack.

They didnt have one but the cashier said

there was a garage next door. Oh, but

they dont open till 8:00. It was only 7:00.

Great.

This is one part of this sad story that

actually went well. Just about the time I

was ready to go behind the gas station

and bounce my head on the wall in hopes

of knocking loose some of the stupid, a

young man who worked at the garage

came to work early. I explained my

situation, pointed to my car which was

about 500 yards away across the

highway, and asked if I could borrow a

little jack. Continued on Pg 109

1 Aug 2013


10/10

A Tiring Ordeal...He smiled and said oh, sure, and

brought out an aluminum racing jack with

a removable handle, a rechargeable

cordless impact wrench fresh off the

charger, and a socket. He then said wait

a minute, went around behind the shop,

brought his car around put the jack and

tools in the car. He handed me the key

and said bring it back when youre done.

(This is why I live in the country.)

I drove to my car, unloaded the tools,

jacked the car up, removed the remains of

the scissor jack and flung it across the

parking lot into the ditch. I removed the

flat, installed the spare, and let the jack

down. No, the spare wasnt flat

completely. Great.

I hooked up the toy lighter-plug

compressor and let it run while I took the

guys car and tools back across the

highway, and walked back across the 4

lane US 50 at 730am. Frogger, anyone?

No chance of overinflating the tirebecause the compressor produces about

1 psi per minute, and it has an automatic

shutoff anyway. When I got back to the

car the spare was good. The flat tire, lug

wrench, and naked genuine accessory

matching alloy spare wheel went back in

the trunk. I walked over to the ditch to get

the remains of the scissor jack and threw

it in the trunk, too.

I got in and took off...or tried to. The park

brake was stuck. Great (not an exact

quote). That would be the one I knew

was screwed up from gravel dust and lack

of use, but it could wait. I finally got it to

release and took the flat tire to the shop I

had borrowed the jack from to have it

repaired.

Were cooking with gas now. Wrong. I

took off down the highway and the

steering wheel moved back and forth an

inch as the spare tire rotated. I got up to

40. The donut spare is hopping up and

down like the piston in a go-cart and the

whole car is shaking like a poodle trying

to pass a peach pit. I can picture my wife

with her arms crossed, going,

MmmHmm. Forty miles hopping up and

down like Captain Kangaroo, going

40mph up US 50 where the speed limit is

65 and traffic runs 75.

I just moved into the fast lane and left my

turn signal on so people would ignore me.Once I got to the city, I get on the inter-

state where the speed limit drops to 60

and traffic speed increases to 80. Cars in

the mirror looked like the green flag had

just dropped at Talladega and I had

missed a shift. I hopped on in to work,

safe and sound and only 2 hours late.

Later, when I got the real tire back on the

car, I inspected the donut spare.

I found a nail in it and the sidewalls were

as wavy as the rumble strip on the side of

the highway. It was probably only a mile

or two from failure as well.

So what did I learn? Although it makes a

funny story considering it was a nice day

and the eventual outcome was good, it

could have been my wife, maybe at night,

or in the rain, or in the middle of nowhere

considering we live 12 miles from the

nearest town.

How many times had I missed anopportunity to avoid this clustI mean

this test of my patience? I could have had

the spare checked, repaired, and

balanced after my wife had the flatbut

that could wait. I could have bought an

inexpensive but sturdy jack, but that could

wait.

I could have had a good tire installed on

the spare wheel, but that could wait. I

could have taken the tire to have it fixed

the right way instead of just plugging it,

but that could wait.I could have fixed the park brake, but that

could wait. All of this did wait, too, until I

needed it. Then it all came home to roost

at the same time.

Remember all that stuff you know you

need to fix on your car? Or your wifes

car? Or your daughters car?

Dont let it waitbut if you do, Truckin On

needs more stories.

10

MSgt (Ret) Jimbo Pehan, a former TMO transporter, sent this YouTube/MotorWeek video to me and I thought it was

exceptional. Its a car show held annually in Minnesota. I think youll enjoy it too, so just click on the link below and see for

yourself. Thanks, Jimbo!

www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=GDEn3i6g3qo

1 Aug 2013
http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=GDEn3i6g3qohttp://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=GDEn3i6g3qohttp://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=GDEn3i6g3qo

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Truckin' on Aug 2013