SERVICE CALLS: Anytime, anywhere PUSHING THE FLIGHT ENVELOPE—on the The box-like device stands 40 feet (12 meters) tall and weighs 29,000 pounds (13,150 kilograms). Five people fit snugly inside. Over an hour, they encounter any number of simulated situations that might occur in flight, such as severe air turbulence, electrical malfunctions, poor weather and collision avoidance. Naval Air Station Jacksonville in Florida uses nine of these Boeingproduced 28 BOEING FRONTIERS Operational Flight Trainers, soon to be 10. Another six will be installed next year at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island in Washington state. The simulator prepares U.S. Navy personnel to fly the P-8A Poseidon, a highly modified military version of Boeing’s 737 for maritime surveillance and patrol. For P-8A crews seated at stations in the main cabin, Boeing supplies the Boeing’s Airplane-On-Ground Operations team is always on call, awaiting difficult assignments, ready for anything. Still, a trip to Houston in 2014 marked one of the team’s most challenging projects, one that nonetheless came off without a hitch—the disassembling and reassembling of the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft and transporting it through the large Texas city. “It was not the biggest job I’ve done, but it was the most unusual,” said James Sloan, the Airplane-On-Ground, or AOG, team leader. Part of Commercial Aviation Services, AOG’s role is to expediently resolve complicated situations in a well-rehearsed and efficient manner, according to its managers. The overall team consists of 100 people who will go anywhere in the world to repair—or in this case, take apart and reassemble—a Boeing airplane. In Houston, 21 AOG employees removed the wings, vertical stabilizer, engine nacelles and landing gear from the retired jet, used by NASA to transport space shuttles. With the aid of a team of contractors, they moved the 747 on trailers at night across eight miles (13 kilometers) of city roadways, from Ellington Field to Space Center Houston, where they put the airplane back together for permanent display. Boeing mechanics had not previously pulled wings off of a jet outside of the factory. Wading through all of the complexities, AOG needed four months to complete the entire job, which included weather delays. “We did stuff that’s never been done before,” Sloan said. Work conditions for AOG jobs might involve harsh weather, political unrest or health risks, but team members are never put in harm’s way. They’re typically on the job 12 hours a day, seven days a week, until it is finished. They visit places many of them have never seen before. Earlier this year, a 61-person AOG team traveled to Europe and repaired a 747 Freighter heavily damaged during a hard landing. It was the middle of winter. A local hangar could only fit the jet’s nose, so a tent was erected around the targeted middle section of the airplane and heat was pumped into the improvised workspace. Over 47 days, two fewer than planned, AOG personnel replaced 13 skin panels, plus stringers and landing gear, and reworked other areas of the airplane. AOG engineers in California designed the major repairs, permanent fixes that wouldn’t require future inspections and added expense. Said Craig Oppedal, the team leader: “It was as good as a new airplane when we were done.” Weapons Tactics Trainer. The trainer allows crewmembers to practice locating enemy submarines and ships, use the radar and electronic support measures equipment, and implement weapons, among other functions. Jacksonville also offers a 40-foot piece of 737 fuselage for maintenance training purposes. It’s but one example of Boeing’s push to expand services. In this case, the Navy
Frontiers November 2015 Issue
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