|
| |
Safety is number 1
By Barry Rollings
Volume 49, No. 10, June 14, 2007 |
| |
|
 |
|
CRISIS AVERTED: Aircraft technician CPL Lucas Rodman (left) and avionics technician CPL Michael Finn from 1SQN received Good Show Awards for detecting an F-111 fault before take-off that could have led to an in-flight emergency.
Photo by LACW Melina Mancuso |
|
| |
 |
SAFE: 1SQN aircrew prepare to launch an F-111 after receiving the all-clear from ground crew.
Photo by CPL Mark McConnell |
|
| |
Keen eyes, good teamwork and quick thinking averted any chance of a mishap at RAAF Base Amberley and earnt two of its corporals a rare Good Show Award recently.
Aircraft technician CPL Lucas Rodman and avionics technician CPL Michael Finn from 1SQN both received the award for noticing that something was not quite right with a slat roller in the wing of an F-111 before take-off.
The slat roller is part of the assembly that supports the slats and ensures that they extend and retract smoothly.
CPL Finn recounted the incident in January, for which they received their awards from OC 82WG GPCAPT Anthony Grady on June 1.
“It was a night sortie,” he recalled. “The jet had just been launched out of the carport and had been taxiing towards the runway.
“Once it left the carport I found a roller which looked out of place where it was. CPL Rodman and I then decided to alert the flightline in order to contact ops and halt the take-off.”
“I was the flightline corporal on the night and went in to alert the desk sergeant,” CPL Rodman said.
CPL Finn estimated the jet was minutes from take-off as it taxied out to approach the runway.
“Once we let them know, the desk sergeant rang ops, who contacted the aircraft and called it back for a visual inspection to make sure it was from that aircraft,” CPL Rodman said.
“It was probably a rare occurrence. The aircraft did not fly that night and the problem was rectified the next day.”
CPL Finn said they had talked to the pilot after the event and he had expressed his gratitude that it had been discovered pre-flight.
When asked what might have happened had the fault gone undetected, CPL Finn said: “It could have resulted in a flap slat lockout. That stops the slats from extending or retracting from the position they are in.”
He speculated that it might have necessitated a high-speed landing, taking the cable.
Their message to their colleagues was “if in doubt, report it”.
“Probably the most important thing was that we detected the problem before the jet took off,” CPL Rodman said. “In another scenario, somebody might have found it but hesitated to contact the flightline.”
Their efforts won the praise of 1SQN senior engineering officer SQNLDR Greg Rawlinson.
“The guys noticed a bearing assembly on the ground, which was quite difficult to see considering the nature of the flightline environment,” he said.
“To their credit they discovered it and called the aircraft back. It was part of the flight control system, and failure of that system in flight could have led to an in-flight emergency.
“They had the conviction of their actions in mind and made that decision to call the aircraft back. It wasn’t an easy decision to make but safety is paramount.
“Their efforts as professional aircraft maintainers delivered a quality service to our customers – which is our aircrew, and that is the culture we are trying to promote here at 1SQN. These two guys are the product of that culture.
“Our culture is such that our guys and girls are encouraged to recognise themselves as professional aircraft maintainers and, as a consequence, this extends them to perform at a higher level and be proud of what they do.”
CPL Rodman also emphasised the need for teamwork. “It was not just the two of us; it was the desk sergeant, ops and other parties who were all involved in preventing the take–off,” he said. |
| |
|
