And They Call It... Rodeo!
Although no one is wearing a Stetson hat and there isn't a steer
in sight, the journey to the 2007 Air Mobility Command Rodeo
promises to be a wild one as 10 Ramstein Air Base aircraft
maintainers prepare to saddle up on a Hercules.
Like an ornery old bull sitting in the chute waiting to be
ridden, a 47-year-old E-model C-130 Hercules is the winged beast
selected to represent the 86th Airlift Wing for the tactical cargo
transport portion of the competition.
The AMC Rodeo challenges aircrews from all over the world in
every aspect of their airframe's mission. More than 55 US and
international teams are slated to participate in the competition to
be held July 22 through 28 at McChord Air Force Base in
Washington.
The competition focuses on readiness, and features airdrop, air
refueling and other events showcasing security forces, aerial port,
maintenance and aeromedical evacuation personnel.
There are 45 US teams, including three from the Marine Corps and
one from the Coast Guard, as well as international competitors from
Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Egypt, Germany, the Netherlands,
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey and the United Arab
Emirates. Nineteen other countries are sending observer teams.
The Ramstein AB aircraft will be the second oldest in the
competition. Combined with its recent eight-month deployment
downrange, this C-130 may be an unlikely candidate in the running
for a trophy at the worldwide competition.
That doesn't worry Maj. Tony Nance, the 86th Aircraft
Maintenance Squadron's operations officer, or any of his nine Rodeo
team maintainers.
"The instant thought is: 'Old airframe, no chance in hell (in
winning the competition),'" Major Nance said. "But there are many
things working in the Rodeo team's favor."
"First of all, we have the best of the best on the (Rodeo) team
selected by our maintenance production superintendent, Master Sgt.
Brett Elledge," Major Nance said.
Nine maintainers representing six career specialties make up the
team. Four crew chiefs share the limelight with one hydraulics
specialist, an electrician, an engine mechanic, a communications
and navigations specialist, and a guidance and control
specialist.
"It's a great honor to be selected amongst your peers," said
Sergeant Elledge, a crew chief and veteran Rodeo participant. "We
look at experience, work ethic and initiative. We even have two
senior airmen on the team who were nominated because their
supervisors felt they were performing at the NCO level."
Even fitness scores can play a role in selection as the
competition incorporates a fitness challenge among randomly
selected team members.
Another advantage being savored by the Rodeo team of maintainers
is that the aging plane selected to represent the wing had come due
for a very thorough and in-depth periodic isochronal
inspection.
Over the course of two weeks, scores of mechanical, structural,
electrical and communications specialists poured over every inch of
the plane to identify and repair what literally amounted to more
than a thousand write-ups. That was a huge benefit to the
nine-member team charged with readying the plane for
competition.
Knowing the aging C-130 would be subjected to thorough
inspections based on functionality and aesthetics, team members
spent many hours pouring over the smallest details.
Senior Airman Arron Jenkins, an electro-environmental
specialist, said he has inspected an estimated 12 miles of
electrical wire throughout the plane.
"With wire management, everything has to be aesthetically
pleasing, so anything that wasn't quite perfect, I had to go in and
retie it and bundle it back up," he said.
As one of the most junior members on the Rodeo team, Airman
Jenkins attributed much of his experience and competence to his
previous assignment at Osan AB, Korea, working on F-16 Fighting
Falcons and A-10 Thunderbolt IIs. He described that as a
"fast-paced and highly scrutinized world."
Tech. Sgt. Christopher Adams, a turbo-prop engine mechanic, said
his previous involvement in a Rodeo competition while stationed at
Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, was where he learned to be a mechanic.
"The more senior mechanic on my last Rodeo team knew every nut
and bolt on these engines," he said. "I was literally like a
secretary writing down all the problems he found with the engine.
It's how I learned a lot of what I know now."
With the amount of work the team has put into the plane,
Sergeant Adams said he feels they could compete with anybody.
"It would be nice to beat up on some '96 models," he said. "I
love coming in as the underdog and I wouldn't have it any other
way."
(Aero-News salutes Master Sgt. Scott Wagers, Det. 4, Air
Force News Agency)