Maintainers achieve rare Black Letter flight

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Jodi Ames
  • 919th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs
Black letter initial status is a category reserved for aircraft that have been released with no discrepancies, including minor write-ups common throughout the aviation community that do not present a safety hazard to aircrews or passengers while flying.

On Oct. 19, 2018, a C-146A Wolfhound aircraft maintained by Airmen assigned to Duke Field reached black-letter-initial status for the first time.

“I’ve done this job for twenty years, and this is only the second time in my career I’ve ever seen it,” said Senior Master Sgt. David Snarr, 592nd Special Operations Maintenance Squadron aircraft maintenance unit superintendent.

Perhaps even more impressive is the fact that once open write-ups were cleared and the aircraft was released to aircrew, it remained in black-letter-initial status for an entire week.

While the term describes actual initials written in black ink on an aircraft inspection checklist, the status says even more about the crews who bring such a milestone to fruition. For maintainers, it’s the pinnacle of excellence.

The level of dedication and attention to detail that goes into reaching this milestone is a feat in itself--some maintainers report only witnessing an aircraft launch under this status once or twice in a career spanning decades. Some go their entire career without ever seeing it themselves. It’s basically the stuff of crew chief lore.

This rarity speaks volumes about the team of active-duty members, reservists, civilians and contractors who work together as partners, guaranteeing readiness of aircraft flying under the non-standard aviation mission. It also says a lot about the level of excellence and standards that leadership within the unit has set for their Airmen.

“The fact that we’re a new organization under TFI and that we are still learning this airplane shows how hard this team is working together to provide the manpower and equipment needed to release aircraft with no discrepancies,” said Snarr.

For Tech. Sgt. Trevin Lohr, dedicated crew chief assigned to the 592nd SOMXS, this was the first time in more than 12 years on active duty that he’s been involved with launching a black-letter-initial aircraft.

It wouldn’t have happened “if it weren’t for the collective efforts of several career fields and shops involved throughout the maintenance group,” said Lohr.

It’s worth noting that the C-146A has only been assigned to Duke Field since 2016, and Air Force maintainers have only recently started overseeing full-time maintenance activities for the fleet of Wolfhounds.

Also, because the aircraft is part of a non-standard aviation mission, there aren’t established Air Force technical orders and manuals that outline maintenance for the commercially produced platforms, said Senior Master Sgt. Michael Tomi, 919th Special Operations Aircraft Maintenance Squadron production superintendent.

Instead, contractors who have worked on the airframe for years serve as subject matter experts and play a vital role in training their Air Force counterparts. They also serve as a critical source of continuity and institutional knowledge for the C-146A mission, he said.

For example, when an Air Force maintainer encounters an issue related to the C-146 for the first time, they are able to leverage the experiences of contractors who share valuable insight to resolve the issue, Tomi explained.

Thanks to this Total Force effort and the cohesive relationships the units have built with one another, Air Force maintainers have been able to quickly familiarize themselves with the Wolfhound, Tomi said.

Maintainers also credited a recently incorporated “health of the fleet” day in their annual flying schedule with creating the optimal environment for achieving excellence.

“We have minimal downtime,” Tomi said. “These planes are flying at least eight to ten hours every day, so it takes getting that downtime, plus the coordination, the parts, supplies and everyone working together to achieve a black-letter-initial flight.”

Considering this is the first black-letter-initial status for the units and for the aircraft, pride is evident amongst the crew. It’s also apparent that the bar of excellence they have set for themselves is even higher now as they fulfill their charge of providing mission-ready aircraft any time, any place.

(The 492nd Special Operations Wing Public Affairs Office contributed to this article.)