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BULLSEYE
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RPA Airmen aim for excellence in annual load crew competition
By Airman 1st Class Kristan Campbell
432nd Wing/432nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. — Airmen as-
signed to the 432nd Wing/432nd Air Expeditionary
at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada, work around the
clock to bring support to the remotely piloted aircraft
enterprise.
Supplying the MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper with
munitions is just one way the 432nd Aircraft Mainte-
nance Squadron weapons load crew Airmen aim for
excellence and exemplify what it takes to accomplish
just that.
Airman 1st Class Quantavious and Airman 1st Class
Ricardo, both AMXS weapons load crew members, and
Staff Sgt. Charlie, AMXS weapons load crew chief, were
selected to represent Reaper Aircraft Maintenance Unit
at the 2015 Load Crew of the Year competition slated
for March 9, 2016.
Also competing for the title from Tiger AMU are
Staff Sgt. Justin, AMXS weapons load crew chief, Senior
Airman Christopher and Airman 1st Class Stuart, both
432nd AMXS weapons load crew members.
This friendly competition challenges a three-person
weapons loading team to see who can load munitions
faster and more effectively, while keeping safety in
mind. As an integral part of load crew tradition, it
furthers skills and promotes camaraderie between the
two RPA maintenance units.
“These load competitions help our teams exercise
U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kristan Campbell responsible for loading both live and inert munitions to
Senior Airman Christopher, 432nd Aircraft Maintenance
Squadron weapons load crew member, performs maintenence
on an MQ-9 Reaper weapons pylon during the 2015 Load
Crew of the Year competition March 10, at Creech Air Force
Base, Nev. Load crew members are responsible for servicing
approximately 40 MQ-1 and MQ-9 aircraft operated at Creech.
U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kristan Campbell
Airman 1st Class Stuart, 43nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron
weapons load crew member, inspects a munition at the 2015
Load Crew of the Year competition March 9, at Creech Air
Force Base, Nev. During the competition, load crew members
check munitions to ensure they are serviceable.
Feature
Airman who participated in the 2015 Load Crew of the Year competition pose for a photo March 10, Creech Air Force
Base, Nev. The competition dates back to the Korean war and is an event used to raise morale within the unit, as well as
to ensure that Airmen gain experience loading munitions in high-stress scenarios.
their skills and abilities to execute the mission in a safe
environment first, and prepare to execute missions for
combat operations, all while improving morale within
the units,” said Col. Matthew Finnegan, 432nd Main-
tenance Group commander.
For each load crew competition, teams are graded
on a number of factors such as the loading of AGM-114
Hellfire missiles and GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided
bombs in a set time, while committing as few discrep-
ancies as possible. The teams are also graded on dress
and appearance, a knowledge based test, and their
composite tool kit.
Airman 1st Class Stuart said the competition helps
to emulate an emergency situation where the crews
have to load munitions quickly and perfectly, while
under stress.
Going into the contest, Airmen know nothing about
the tasks ahead of them. To prepare, they keep their
skills sharpened by visiting the ‘load barn’, or weapons
standardization section to train and increase knowledge.
There are nine small teams in Reaper AMU, each
with a unique name. Quantavious, Ricardo and Charlie
make up Crew 25 in Reaper AMU. Load crew teams are
support the training schedule at home station, as well
as the heavy operations tempo downrange.
“Crew 25 has set the bar high for all other load crews
to measure up to,” said Master Sgt. Frederick, 432nd
AMXS weapons flight chief. “They have such a balance
between precision and speed while ensuring the job is
U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kristan Campbell chief, said the Airmen from Tiger AMU were picked for
Staff Sgt. Justin, 432nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron
weapons load crew chief, loads a bomb onto the aircraft
during the 2015 Load Crew of the Year competition March
10, at Creech Air Force Base, Nev. Justin is in charge of
Airman 1st Class Stuart and Senior Airman Christopher,
both 432nd AMXS weapons load crew members.
5April 1, 2016
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U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kristan Campbell
U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kristan Campbell
Airman 1st Class Quantavious and Airman 1st Class Ricardo,
both 432nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron weapons load
crew members, performs maintenance during the 2015 Load
Crew of the Year competition March 9, at Creech Air Force
Base, Nev. Quantavious and Ricardo were selected to represent
Reaper Aircraft Maintenance Unit at the competition.
done 100 percent correct the first time. They work well
under pressure.”
Frederick went on to say what makes the crew special
is its Airmen and the leadership of a seasoned team chief.
Charlie ‘s crew won both the second and fourth quar-
ter Load Crew of the Quarters in 2015, which is rarely
accomplished by Airmen of their rank. They were also
selected to participate in exercise Combat Hammer,
designed to assess and evaluate the reliability, main-
tainability, suitability and accuracy of RPA munitions.
By comparison, Justin, Christopher and Stuart were
selected individually from crews three, four and nine
of Tiger AMU to compete based on their ability to
perform above standard. The team participated in the
Load Crew of the Quarter competition December of
2015, and proved they had what it takes to compete in
the annual competition.
Staff Sgt. Nelson, 432nd AMXS weapons load crew
their overall performance and fast load times.
Individual merit and the ability to carry out their
tasks above average are what makes them the load crew
of choice from Tiger, said Nelson.
“I’m excited to face off against Airman Wall again,”
said Stuart. “We had a great load comp last quarter, but we
are pulling out all the stops this time to get Tiger a win.”
Names of the winners will be released April 1, 2016
at the Maintenance Professional of the Year banquet.