76th CMXG “You name it, we sustain it.”

Published Jan. 29, 2009
By Brandice J. Armstrong
Tinker Public Affairs

TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla., -- "You name it, we sustain it," said Col. Jeffrey Sick, 76th Commodities Maintenance Group commander.

Situated in the heart of the Oklahoma Air Logistics Center, the commodities maintenance group is one of five groups within the 76th Maintenance Wing. Home to nearly 2,000 personnel in three major production squadrons and three divisions, the group sustains warfighter weapon systems by treating each as if they were 1 million piece parts that fly, fire or fight in tight formation. They do this because the commodities maintenance group repairs, overhauls and manufactures tens-of-thousands of components every year for the Air Force and Department of Defense. In recent months, the group achieved several notable accomplishments and is preparing for upcoming challenges and changes.

"We're all about making things happen," Colonel Sick said. "We're capable of doing anything - overhaul and repair, machining, casting and manufacturing. No challenge is insurmountable."

Considered a key supplier to the supply chain, the group engineers and produces parts when the original equipment manufacturer has stopped creating the piece. Situated in 26 buildings throughout the base, the group uses aluminum, steel, sheet metal, glass, fiberglass and most other materials to accomplish their work. Additionally, the group overhauls and repairs older, aging parts and systems -- cruise missiles, avionics, air and fuel accessories, constant speed drives, integrated drive generators, oxygen systems -- handy, should something happen.

"With our aircraft flying through the air at 500 or 600 miles per hour (and in the case of B-1 or our F-15 and F-16s, at supersonic speeds) there are a lot of things whirring and twisting and grinding," the colonel said. "All of those piece parts that are whirring and twisting and grinding in tight formation have to perform in unison, like a well-oiled machine. That is what we provide to the warfighter."

In addition to maintaining Air Force weapon systems, the group also supports the Corpus Christi Army Depot, which performs maintenance on UH-60 Black Hawk utility helicopters among other helicopters, Navy and Coast Guard.

"We're the manufacturer of last resort," said Michael Wenzel, 76th CMXG deputy director. "In other words, when no one else can do it, we do it."

In the past year, the group has achieved several notable accomplishments. Among them, in February 2008, the 552nd Commodities Maintenance Squadron Wheel and Tire Shop personnel visited a commercial aircraft company's wheel and tire shop in Tulsa. The unit learned several lessons, such as adopting a cellular design, in which all work on a single item is completed at one station, and are implementing the processes into the shop's daily practices. The squadron is now partnering with the KC-135 System Program Office on an innovative regional maintenance concept for wheels and tires, similar to that employed by a commercial aircraft company.

In April, the group debuted their now fully-functional compact radome inside Bldg. 3707. Enclosed in a 40-foot by 40-foot by 60-foot room lined with absorbent foam, personnel test radar equipment from KC-135s, E-3s and the Navy's E-6 using a parabolic reflector 40 feet from the equipment.

In August, the 552nd CMXS successfully and on a tight suspense, manufactured and delivered 800 left T-38 aileron actuator levers to Ogden Air Logistics Center at Hill Air Force Base, Utah.

And in September, the group announced the construction of a new consolidated fuels facility on Douglas Boulevard. Bldg. 3907, a $32 million 140,000-square-foot facility is scheduled for completion in March 2010, with wetted fuel shops moving in by late spring-early summer. The building will support the test and calibration of fuel system components including fuel controls, pumps, actuators for aircraft airframes and engines.

In addition to the accomplishments, the group is preparing for significant changes. Before the end of 2009, three sheet-metal shops are scheduled to move into the Tinker Aerospace Complex, the former General Motors assembly plant on SE 74th Street. More than 500 people will consolidate from three separate buildings. When TAC is completed, the group will have merged from 26 buildings to 10 buildings.

"[The 76th CMXG] is a very energetic bunch of folks that have a lot of capabilities," Colonel Sick said. "We have an amazing group of professionals that really care about the work they do. They really want to help their country. They're great Americans, patriots and they're a national asset."