MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. -- The maintenance crew Marines of Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, the “Flying Tigers,” spend their days breaking down CH-53E Super Stallions in search of damage to repair and gears to grease.
Each element of the aircraft must be inspected by an aviation electronic technician, an airframe mechanic, a CH-53E flightline mechanic and a ground support equipment technician before it is given the approval to fly.
After one of the squadron’s Super Stallions completes 200 hours of flight time, logged by an aviation maintenance administrator, it is taken apart by the crew. The helicopter is then referred to as “in phase,” explained Cpl. Michael R. Rehl, an aviation maintenance administrator with HMH-361 and a Philadelphia native.
When a helicopter is in phase it is stripped of all panels and interior engine pieces are removed. Each point, including cables, lines and bolts, of the CH-53E must be inspected by multiple crew members for damage to ensure the aircraft is safe for future flights.
“We completely gut it,” said Lance Cpl. Cory D. Pancake, an airframe mechanic with HMH-361 and a Youngstown, Ohio, native. “We take every last piece apart to check for damage and grease all of the friction points.”
A break-down involves inspecting every line running along the interior of the aircraft as well as below the exterior panels of the helicopter for any holes or kinks that may cause a malfunction during flight. This type of inspection can take four hours to complete and is known as a 14-day inspection.
The maintenance crew must also remove all old grease from each friction point on the aircraft, including the swash plate and tail points, before coating it with new grease.
“An experienced Marine can get a swash plate greased in an hour and a half, but it can be a very time consuming process and really messy,” said Sgt. Matthew D. Rodriguez, a CH-53E flightline mechanic with HMH-361 and a Sterling, Ill., native.
Each Marine in the maintenance department has a specific role, and in addition to the time-consuming aspect of the job, many of the Flying Tigers’ maintenance Marines must take time to remove various pieces of the aircraft for others to even be able to work.
“We support each other,” said Rodriguez. “If someone needs to work on something located behind or underneath an element that we work on, we remove our pieces to allow access for someone else to work. Then when they are done, we have to go back and reattach and inspect our parts again.”
After friction points have been greased, lines have been inspected panels are reinstalled, a team of four maintenance Marines completes a follow-up inspection before releasing the aircraft to pilots.
Each member of the “Flying Tigers” maintenance team, whether they are mechanics or technicians, spends countless hours working to keep HMH-361 Marines and those they support safe by ensuring that the Super Stallions they maintain are fit to fly.
“That is the moment that we work for,” said Staff Sgt. Robert C. Wuthrich, an aviation electronic technician with the squadron and a Kuna, Idaho, native. “Watching something take off because of the work we do is amazing. That is what makes our hearts beat.”