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Joint base Senior Airman Maintains KC-10 Engines in Southwest Asia

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Scott Sturkol
  • 380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  Senior Airman Clinton King is a KC-10 Extender aerospace propulsion journeyman with the 380th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at a non-disclosed base in Southwest Asia. King is deployed from the 605th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J.

As an aerospace propulsion journeyman, King must be able to advise, perform troubleshooting and determine repair procedures on aircraft engines. On a KC-10 Extender, the Air Force's largest air refueling tanker, that can be a challenge taking care of the three General Electric CF6-50C2 turbofan engines.

King serves with the 380th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at a non-disclosed base in Southwest Asia. He said in his deployed duties as a KC-10 maintainer who cares for the plane's engines, it can be a tall order to work on the engines since it's the only plane in the Air Force inventory with an engine built into the tail of the aircraft.

"I do my job by troubleshooting any problem with the engine or auxiliary power unit," said King, who is deployed from the 605th AMXS at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. "As engine mechanics on the KC-10, we have to ensure they will work and be able to fly without any problems."

Each engine is capable of 52,500 pounds of thrust. To keep those engines in prime working order to complete missions for operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom and the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, King's Air Force job description shows he must be able to diagnose and repair malfunctions. He does that using technical publications and solves maintenance problems by studying drawings, wiring and schematic diagrams and technical instructions. Additionally, the job description shows he has to analyze operating characteristics of aircraft engines and inspect, certify and approve completed maintenance actions.

"We have to keep working to keep our deployed KC-10s flying because it's critical," said King. "It's critical because without us, the jets would not be able to fly and refuel those fighters providing ground support for the troops on the ground in places like Afghanistan. In a way, what we do contributes to saving lives of our forces on the front lines."

King has been in the Air Force for two years and nine months. He said being deployed allows him to give back to his country and provide a service that is critical in the chain of support for warfighters who are forward deployed.

"I'm happy to give back to my country by protecting it and providing my skills to make it better," he said. "It gives me a good feeling that I am protecting my country. Being deployed allows military members from all branches, squadrons and bases to get along and come together as a team to help a lot of people."

The KC-10s King maintains are assigned to the 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron and are on a pretty busy schedule. In 2009, according to the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing History Office, KC-10s from the 908th EARS offloaded more than 422 million gallons of fuel to more than 31,400 aircraft. That's all the more reason to continue doing well, Airman King said.

"It's what we do every day and every night," King said. "It doesn't matter how much work we have to do, all of the KC-10 maintainers come together and we keep this mission going."

The 380th EAMXS is a unit assigned to the 380th AEW. The 380th AEW is comprised of four groups and 12 squadrons and the wing's deployed mission includes air refueling, surveillance and reconnaissance in support of overseas contingency operations in Southwest Asia.