JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST , N.J. -- Gone are the days of 305th Aerial Port Squadron Airmen manually completing vehicle inspections. The unit’s innovative spirit has led them to seek a more modern process with the Real-time Hybrid Internet of Things Networked Operations (RHINO) application.
The 305th APS collaborated with the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL), Air Mobility Command and Stonewall Defense to develop a digital application to capture vital mission data for government vehicles.
“RHINO is the digitization of the Air Force form Airmen use to inspect vehicles,” said U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Justin Davis, AFRL secure mobile digital operations deputy program manager. “We made the form into an application that can be accessible on mobile devices to create a digital platform for fleet management. The data captured by the application will allow vehicle control officers and section leads to monitor the status of their fleet, identify issues and ensure proper vehicle inspections are happening.”
The 305th APS has contributed toward this product for approximately a year and plans to test the real-life application for a month.
“Right now, the application allows us to view the commission status of each and every single vehicle in the 305th APS fleet,” said U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Sean Cyphert, 305th APS special handling section chief. “With the simple click of a button, I can tell which vehicles are in maintenance, which vehicles are in commission, and which vehicles are TDY. The RHINO product, in the future, will allow us to gain critical vehicle data and perform better-scheduled maintenance for our vehicles.”
Additionally, Airmen assigned the 305th APS believe the RHINO application will streamline the check-out process of government vehicles.
“This program will make my job easier by mitigating the amount of paper copies I have to handle and speed up the process of vehicles receiving the maintenance they need,” said Senior Airman Garrett Townsend, 305th APS passenger service representative.