566th AMXS: A vital mission Published Feb. 26, 2009 By Brandice J. Armstrong 72nd Air Base Wing Public Affairs TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla., -- The 566th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron keeps at least seven types of aircraft airborne each day. The squadron, a part of the 76th Maintenance Wing, performs depot-level maintenance on the E-3 Sentry and the Navy's E-6 Mercury. It also performs corrosion prevention for the KC-135 Stratotanker, B-1 Lancer, B-52 Stratofortress, KC-10 Extender, C-130 Hercules, E-3 and E-6. Additionally, the squadron achieved several notable accomplishments in the past couple of years and has more significant projects planned for the upcoming years. "The culture of the 566th AMXS is unique," said Maj. Jonathan Schuppel, 566th AMXS deputy director. "Individual members work like a finely tuned machine. Having a cohesive team is the foundation of our accomplishments." The squadron is also highly recognized for corrosion prevention and its responsibility to de-paint each depot aircraft upon aircraft induction. De-painting entails removing all paint from an aircraft and its various parts. Paint is reapplied before an aircraft makes its departure. Paint is removed by one of two methods - media blasting, similar to sand-blasting or chemical paint removal. Depending on aircraft requirements and the way in which paint is removed, the process can take one-and-a-half days or up to 10 days. After all inspections and repairs are performed, aircraft are repainted. In a given year, the squadron de-paints and paints roughly 70 aircraft, with KC-135s making up the majority of the workload. In January 2008, the squadron added the KC-10, an air refueling aircraft, to its paint workload. The addition made history when the Federal Aviation Administration awarded Tinker a repair station certification, the first-ever for a Department of Defense depot. The FAA certification was necessary for Tinker to obtain due to the KC-10's classification as a commercial-derivative aircraft. In addition to corrosion prevention, the squadron does other work including scheduled and unscheduled depot-level maintenance. The work is primarily done for the E-3 and E-6, but the unit has performed maintenance on other aircraft including refurbishing NASA's B-377-SG/SGT-4 Super Guppy and replacing a rotodome bearing on a Royal Saudi air force E-3. The squadron took on the additional work after it exercised lean transformation initiatives and significantly reduced flow time. "Probably the most notable achievement the squadron has had in the last few years is a significantly larger capacity created by cutting the number of E-3s in depot-level maintenance to less than two-thirds what it was a few years ago," Major Schuppel said. "The squadron made great use of lean transformation and significantly cut flow-times even though our workload requirement on E-3s increased." Later this year, the 566th AMXS will begin a new Navy maintenance program, the E-6 Service Life Extension Program, which consists heavily of fastener removal and replacement of the lower wing section, which Major Schuppel said is nearly a third of the size of the current E-3 program. "The goal of SLEP is fatigue life enhancement of wing and tail surfaces to extend the useful lifespan of the aircraft," said Kirk Flanagan, Enhanced Phase Maintenance lead for the Navy's Fleet Support at Team Tinker. Toward the beginning of fiscal year 2011, the 566th AMXS will debut the Block 40/45 modification project, which replaces the current mission computer system and operators' terminals with a commercial, off-the-shelf computer system and a network of operator workstations. "Block 40/45 Modification is the single most significant upgrade in the history of the AWACS fleet," said Wilbur Walker, 566th AMXS and Weapon System Support Center Procedures and Analysis section chief. "It provides a more versatile and cost effective platform." The project will also upgrade radar equipment, communications capabilities and electronic support measures. Completed in two parts, the program is scheduled to start in November 2010 and be finished by 2020.