Ellsworth,Tinker partner to repair B-1

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Abigail Klein
  • 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. --  Seven bomber repair experts from Tinker Air Force Base, Okla., 76th Aircraft Maintenance Group, Expeditionary Depot Maintenance Flight were dispatched to Ellsworth, March 21, saving Ellsworth approximately 1500 man-hours by repairing a B-1B that sustained damage here.

The damage occurred in mid-January 2009 after a maintenance stand fell, piercing the B-1s fuselage. The damage required the application of custom-made sections of aircraft skin, said Master Sgt. Johnny Barton, 28th Maintenance Squadron production superintendent.

Due to the size and extent of the damage, workers from the 551st Commodities Maintenance Squadron sheet metal shop at Tinker had to create non-existing manufacturing jigs and formers to shape the one-eighth-inch-thick aluminum skin sections.

"This was a big collaboration effort at Tinker," said Capt. Jake Elsass, 28th Maintenance Operations officer. "The damage to the B-1 was beyond Ellsworth's organic capabilities."

To physically make the repairs, members of the 76th Aircraft Maintenance Group, Expeditionary Depot Maintenance Flight, were appointed and arrived March 22 at Ellsworth.

"The EDMX team is normally assigned to any aircraft within the Air Combat Command that is beyond a location's repair capability," Sergeant Barton said. "If one of our B-1's can't fly, they are capable of making it air-worthy again."

The repair was estimated to last 20 duty days, but blizzards cancelled two of the seven duty days after the team's arrival, making early completion of the B-1 difficult, Sergeant Barton said.

"We've put about 1,500 man-hours into repairing this B-1," said Tech. Sgt. Stephen Getten, 76 AMXS/EDMX assistant team chief of the on-site repair crew. "Our main job is to be on the road and we'll be here however long it takes to repair the B-1."
Sending repair teams from Tinker to fix B-1s at outlying air bases is becoming increasingly common as the demands on the strategic bomber are high downrange. The aircraft are often on-call, which increases wear and operational damage.

Captain Elsass echoed the team's dedication to the success of the repair.

"Without the team, we would not have been able to repair this B-1," Captain Elsass said. "They did a great job, and we really appreciate their efforts."