Logistics Airmen keep C-130J fleet fueled for flight

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Ryan Labadens
  • 403rd Wing Public Affairs
KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  Keeping the various aircraft in the United States Air Force soaring is an intricate process, one that requires constant attention to detail and involves many moving parts. One particular moving part that keeps these planes aloft is not a solid one, but a liquid: fuel.

Like everything else in the Air Force, the fuel used for its fleet of aircraft undergoes rigorous inspections. And making sure the fuel is fit for flight is the job of the fuels quality control specialists.

The 403rd Wing here has two flying squadrons assigned to it: the 815th Airlift Squadron "Flying Jennies" and the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron "Hurricane Hunters." Both squadrons fly their own unique aircraft and missions. The 815th AS flies 10 C-130J Super Hercules stretch models in support of tactical airlift, while the 53rd WRS flies 10 WC-130J models for gathering weather data during hurricane and winter storm seasons.

Out of the more than 1,400 Citizen Airmen assigned to the 403rd Wing, only two reservists are tasked with the responsibility of ensuring the fuel that gets pumped into these aircraft is the "Grade A" quality it needs to be.

Senior Airmen John Ortiz-Morales and Richard Neal, 403rd Logistics Readiness Squadron fuels quality control specialists, both started off their careers as fuels specialists before being selected by a supervisor and shop chief to attend the four-week Fuels Quality Control Course, a joint Army-Air Force school held at Fort Lee, Virginia.

"Our main responsibility is making sure that the fuel meets Air Force standards," said Ortiz-Morales. "As far as the quality of the chemicals that go in the fuel, we're making sure that they meet all of the specifications before it goes in our planes."

Before it even reaches the aircraft, the Jet A fuel used by the wing needs to undergo several tests performed in a controlled laboratory environment here at the 403rd Wing.
Beakers, flasks and other bottles of various shapes and sizes line the lab where Ortiz-Morales and Neal do their fuel quality tests, some of which they perform under a chemical fume hood for ventilation purposes. They wear latex gloves and safety goggles to prevent fuel from accidently splashing onto their skin or in their eyes while they perform their tests, and special care is taken to ensure no materials or equipment is in the lab that could ignite a spark.

When the fuel comes to the base in tanker trucks delivered by a contractor, it is first inspected by Ortiz-Morales and Neal before being stored in the fuel storage tanks on base. They perform four essential tests before the fuel is pumped into the storage tanks and then eventually placed in the 6,000-gallon R11 refueling trucks the two flying squadrons use to refill their aircraft. These tests are the fuel system icing inhibitor (or "FSII") test, the flash test, the conductivity test, and the particles contamination test (or "bottle method").

FSII is a fuel additive that prevents the formation of ice in fuel lines. The FSII concentration is normally lower for cargo aircraft than it is fighter jets since most cargo planes don't fly as high as fighters and don't usually experience the colder temperatures fighters do from traveling at higher altitudes.

The flash test determines the temperature at which the fuel vapors ignite, while the conductivity test checks the amount of static dissipater in the fuel, which helps suppress the formation of static charges when fuel is transferred to the aircraft.

For the particles contamination test, Ortiz-Morales and Neal take a quart-sized fuel sample in a glass beaker and visually inspect it, swirling the clear liquid around to see if any dust, dirt or other contaminants are in the fuel. The main particular contaminant they are on the lookout for is another clear liquid: water.

"If any of that gets sucked into the jet line, it's going to displace the fuel (since water is heavier), and when it hits the actual atomizer to go into the jet, it's going to spray water instead of fuel, so the jet is going to flameout - and that's not good," said Neal, referring to how an engine can suddenly stop midflight.

There are more than 10 types of aviation fuel the military uses for the different airframes in the Air Force industry. For Ortiz-Morales, the opportunity to work with a variety of airframes is what initially attracted him to the fuels career field.

"When I went to my recruiter, he told me about all the different career fields available, and fuels really caught my attention because you're not just dealing with one type of plane, you're dealing with all types of planes. That, to me, was really cool," said Ortiz-Morales.

Neal came off of active-duty and joined the Air Force Reserve almost eight months ago. During his time in the military he said he worked on a wide variety of aircraft, from cargo planes to fighters. He said one of the most challenging aspects of this career field is working in the lab.

"From the time the fuel comes on base to the time it hits the skin of the aircraft, we are the ones that are constantly monitoring the quality control of it, to make sure it's not degrading or anything. The fuel that we monitor is the fuel that goes into the aircraft, and we have to make sure that it's not going to fail while they're up there flying," said Neal. "There's constant attention to detail in the laboratory. You have to maintain the highest focus and keep your mind sharp at all times."

For Ortiz-Morales, the responsibility that goes along with those challenges is one of the main things he enjoys about being a fuels quality control specialist.

"For me, that's the most rewarding aspect: the responsibility. You're the one making sure the fuel meets the grade for those planes so the pilots can fly safe," said Ortiz-Morales.