Fusion cell ensures maintainers keep jets in air, mission on track

  • Published
  • By Karen Abeyasekere
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
RAF Mildenhall, England --  RAF Mildenhall is the only permanent U.S. air refueling wing in the European theater, providing air refueling to both the U.S. Air Force and other nations' air forces around the world, so it's imperative that the fleet of KC-135 Stratotankers have as little down time as possible.

The aircraft are old, and every now and then they tend to have a part or two break.

To respond to their maintenance needs, it's vital to have those parts on hand as quickly as possible, so aircraft can get fixed promptly and resume the mission.

To help that process along, the 100th Logistics Readiness Squadron created the KC-135 Weapons System Fusion Cell, to help maintenance get parts delivered as expeditiously as possible.

This system is the first of its kind in the Air Force and is a benchmark.

"The fusion cell is a functional combination of transportation, supply and analysis, which together creates a logistical force multiplier, enabling us to provide a higher level of support to the warfighter," explained Capt. Matthew Edwards, 100th LRS deployment and distribution flight commander from Exeter, California, adding that the shop was the idea of Maj. Michael Boswell, 100th LRS commander.

It took approximately three weeks from inception to when it came online, because the 100th LRS leadership wanted to make sure they had the right people in the shop due to the key roles and responsibilities each would hold.

"We do a lot of analysis, such as looking at order history, and (monitoring) how many times maintenance orders a certain part to ensure we have it on base in case they may need it in future," said Master Sgt. Jilam Dickson, 100th LRS KC-135 Weapon System Fusion Cell section chief from Springfield, Massachusetts, explaining how the fusion cell keeps the shipment of aircraft parts flowing smoothly at all times.

The four-Airmen-strong shop fulfills five main functions:

· Team lead: Focuses on mission-capable items and provides direction.

· Mission-capable (item) support: Oversees everything from initial ordering to receiving items.

· Isochronal/Hourly Post-flight inspection: Airmen work alongside the 100th Maintenance Squadron expeditor and dock controller, ensuring all necessary assets are ordered.

· Analysis: Continuously analyze maintenance utilization trends to identify high use or high demand aircraft parts for the 100th Air Refueling Wing.

· Transportation: Coordinate with other transportation teams, whether in the U.S., Europe or U.K.

"MiCap support makes up 90 percent of what we do," explained Dickson. "If an aircraft breaks, this (section of the fusion cell helps) get the aircraft flyable again. So, if maintenance tells us a part is MiCap, it becomes a real priority. We have two people on it, making calls, making sure it gets here as soon as possible to get the plane back in the air."

The section chief added that the analysis section is able to forecast which parts are needed according to various seasons and aircraft age, therefore preventing supply shortages.

"Our supply system is very reactive, and looks at the usage rates of what maintenance orders. It can take between six to nine months to gather the information and automatically put a demand in our system so we have (required) parts on base," Dickson said.

This alleviates the need to wait all year for the system to automatically build that demand.

Dickson explained how the fusion cell is vital to RAF Mildenhall's mission, enabling maintenance Airmen to quickly and easily get the required aircraft parts delivered and the jet back in the air and providing refueling support.

"The more parts that you have on hand, and the faster you can get parts to the maintainers, the healthier your fleet will be," he added. "The faster parts get here and the more we have on hand, the less likely that we'll have a downed aircraft."

The newly formed shop is already proving its worth.

"In December 2014, the 100th ARW hit its lowest supply rate, at seven percent - the lowest since September 2012," exclaimed Edwards. "None of this would have been possible without our fusion cell team."

Editor's note: The KC-135 Stratotanker does not carry weapons.