DVIDS – News – Aerospace equipment flight provides around-the-clock support

The Aerospace Ground Equipment flight at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska provides 24/7 preventive and repair maintenance to essential equipment that ensures the various aircraft of the 3rd Wing can execute their missions.

About 50 Airmen and civilian employees support 24-hour operations and maintain more than 900 assets within three AGE shops.

“We have three shops strategically located around the flightline,” said Tech. Sgt. Jacob Hall, 3rd Maintenance Squadron AGE production superintendent. “Our fighter shop supports the 90th (Fighter Generation Squadron) and 525th (FGS); then we have our heavy shop which supports the 962nd (Airborne Air Control Squadron) Airborne Early Warning and Control Systems aircraft and the 732nd (Air Mobility Squadron) en-route aircraft. Then we have the main AGE shop, which supports Red Flag and all other exercises as well as transient alert.”

The three shops support approximately 120 aircraft belonging to JBER, along with almost 1,500 transient aircraft yearly.

“One challenge is towing all the equipment around the flightline,” said Hall. “Another is that during exercises, the main shop may have to borrow from the heavy shop, depending on where they park the aircraft. Or we start running low on generators, and [there’s a challenge] that goes into transporting the equipment around.”

Aside from supporting 120 JBER aircraft, AGE also has a huge role during exercises.

According to Hall, during any given year, JBER will host three to four Red Flag iterations, and Northern Edge, which is the largest exercise in the Pacific Air Forces. During these exercises, AGE will support all the F-22 Raptors from JBER along with all the visiting aircraft including international ones. Every other year, they also help support the Arctic Thunder Open House.

As general mechanics of all equipment, AGE Airmen are proficient in troubleshooting and performing maintenance on 107 different equipment models.

“AGE is important because of the preventative maintenance checks that we perform, systems checks, servicing, and depo repairs,” said Staff Sgt. Evan Cooper, 3rd MXS AGE craftsman. “We provide them all the equipment, and we maintain all the equipment we provide as well.”