Page 12 - Luke AFB Thunderbolt, November 2020

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November 2020
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AFCEC awarded patent for new runway repair technology 56th FW makes history ...

by I’m flattered that people think it’s named Receives maintenance award two consecutive years
NATAUShA BLY after me.”
While K-Fill won’t be in the field for
Air Force installation and mission support Center operational use for about two more years,
Public Affairs
securing the patent is a major step toward
TYNDALL AiR FoRCe BASe, Fla. equipping RADR teams with this mission-
— The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office critical tool.
recently granted the Air Force a patent for “Whether it’s damage from an attack
an innovative runway repair solution devel- or natural disaster, an out-of-commission
oped at the Air Force Civil Engineer Center. airfield in a remote location presents a
The formula, developed by members of huge risk to mission and Airmen,” said
AFCEC’s laboratory at Tyndall Air Force Maj. Khary Davis, AFCEC Expeditionary
Base, will allow Rapid Airfield Damage Engineering Division chief. “You can’t get
Repair, or RADR, teams to quickly repair supplies if you have a blocked transporta-
runways using materials that can be gath- tion path. Providing an option to increase
ered locally, such as sand and clay. the use of in-situ materials allows addi-
Additionally, the Air Force expects sig- tional options to civil engineers and can
nificant cost savings, said Craig Mellerski, help reduce the time to reopen airfields and
AFCEC Requirements and Acquisition logistic chains.”
Division chief. Using locally-sourced mate- With supplies at the ready, RADR teams
rials for three quarters of the mixture will Andrea Kennington can fill and set concrete in just over an hour,
save the Air Force approximately $1,140 The Air Force Civil Engineer Center’s Readiness Directorate research team fills bringing airfields back online quickly and
per cubic yard. craters using K-Concrete, Oct. 6, at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. The innovative at a cost savings to taxpayers.
The road to inventing cementitious mate- runway repair solution was developed by members of AFCEC’s Laboratory at Tyn- Five years after starting this journey with
rial began in 2015, Mellerski said. dall AFB. The solution allows rapid airfield damage repair teams to quickly repair now-retired lab members, Dr. Derek Lovin- Staff Sgt. Franklin R. Ramos
“The Air Force needed an alternate runways using materials that can be gathered locally, such as sand and clay. good, Michael Henley and Jeffery Eichler, Retired Lt. Gen. Nicholas Kehoe, Order of Daedalians national commander, presents the Maj. Gen.
backfill solution that can be used in remote Griffith is grateful she was able to take the Clements McMullen Weapons System Maintenance Award to Brig. Gen. Gregory Kreuder, 56th Fighter
areas to patch damaged runways, allow- evaluations and three K-Concrete field popular belief, the K does not stand for project over the finish line for her team. Wing commander and Col. James Greenwald, 944th FW commander, Oct. 6, at Luke Air Force Base.
ing critical mission operations to resume evaluations, and tested different combina- Kara Griffith, the last remaining member “It means a lot to me that I was able to Awarded annually by the Secretary of the Air Force, the award is presented to an Air Force mainte-
quickly,” Mellerski said. tions of sand, soil, clay and gravel mixed in of the original research team. “Potassium finish this work, and that I was able to com- nance unit with the greatest weapon system maintenance record for the previous year. The 56th and
The AFCEC research team set out to with fly ash and an activator solution. Silicate Powder is the preferred ingredient plete the goals we had originally set out to 944th fighter wings earned the award for the second consecutive year, 2018 and 2019 — the first time in
create an adjustable, rapid-setting concrete Eventually, they landed on a formula- in the activator solution,” Griffith said. “’K’ complete when all of us were here,” Griffith the award’s 60-year history. The most recent win is Luke’s fourth time earning the trophy.
solution. They clocked in four K-Fill field tion they dubbed “K-Fill.” Contrary to is the chemical symbol for Potassium — but said. “I’m glad I didn’t fail my team.”

Military to play logistics-only role in COVID-19 vaccine effort

by “Gen. (Gustave F. Perna), and his team ...
C. ToDD LoPeZ are guiding all of that with scores of folks from
both the CDC and the DOD,” Mango said. “We
Department of Defense news
will have an operation center that will tell us
U.S. military personnel won’t be administering at any given time exactly where every dose of
any COVID-19 vaccines to the American people vaccine is.”
once the vaccines are approved for use. But the Those operations centers, he said, will be
U.S. military will lend its experienced hand in similar to those set up for things like hur-
logistics to ensure the vaccine is available across ricanes.
the nation, said Paul Mango, the deputy chief of “We’re going to have one just for vaccines
staff for policy at the Department of Health and that Gen. Perna, his team and the CDC are
Human Services. going to man 24 hours a day,” Mango said.
“The overwhelming majority of Americans will “They will know where every vaccine dose is.
get a vaccine that no federal employee, including If a vaccine dose is at risk of expiring, they will
the Department of Defense, has touched,” Mango guide the movement of that to someplace else.”
said during a Oct. 23 teleconference regarding What Mango also said, however, is that fed-
Operation Warp Speed, the DOD and HHS effort eral military personnel will not be involved
to find a vaccine for COVID-19. “That said ... we in touching the vaccine or administering it to
have the best logisticians in the world at the Americans. He did add that if state governors
Department of Defense, working in conjunction want their own National Guard personnel to Tech. Sgt. Rebeccah Woodrow
with the CDC, to guide ... every logistical detail be involved as part of a state-run effort, they A C-130 Hercules stationed at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, delivers pal-
you could possibly think of.” will do that at their discretion. lets of medical equipment to Aviano Air Base, Italy, March 20. While U.S.
That effort, Mango said, involves things such “The federal military will not be involved in military personnel will not be directly involved in handling or moving CO-
as needles, syringes, swabs, adhesive bandages, moving any doses or injecting any vaccines,” VID-19 vaccines for the nation, their expertise in logistics will be involved
dry ice and trucks, for instance. he said. in making sure every American has access to vaccines.

hisPAniC (from Page 2) with a deep patriotism for the country that he had grown share with those around me. This understanding helps
up and served in and felt it was his responsibility to me be grateful for each opportunity I have experienced.
it was necessary for minorities to protect themselves. make meaningful contributions to it. I recognize these advantages in my life as the byprod-
While the war was unfolding, there was another war My life and military career, compared to his, has uct of the many sacrifices he made to advance his chil-
on the home front with the Ku Klux Klan, who terror- been polar opposite. I have never experienced racism dren’s prosperity; however, these sacrifices run deeper
ized minorities. On the opposing side were the Black or discrimination to the extent he has, and opportu- than just the love of a father. They are a fundamental
Panthers and Brown Berets who fought back. nities for education have always been available. The structure in a culture which emphasizes the importance
My father’s first encounter with the KKK was in military I know and work in today is a diverse force of family, strength and perseverance.
Vietnam, when they filled the ditches that were next that encourages the promotion of people with different The celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month shows
to the tents of minorities with gasoline, setting them backgrounds. the growing recognition of the contributions made by
on fire and killing several people. Through my father’s experiences, I have learned that members of the Latinx community and the embrace of
Even with the obstacles he faced, my father emerged the world does not owe me anything — a realization I a beautiful culture.