Warbird Information Exchange

For the flyers out there, who does your survival equipment inspections? Are they done on the same cycle that we do them in Air Force? Are you required to have your helmet, mask inspected? Do you send it back to the company for repairs? Just curious, with my retirement around the corner, I'm looking for a means to keep my sanity, and after 22 years of inspecting and building up helmets, masks, inspecting survival kits and vests, I think I'd be a little qualified for the task. Just curious.


Mike in Florida
USAF Aircrew Life Support
"Your Life Is Our Business"

I have an HGU 33 and a british mk3 that could use some work and the MB12 might need an inspection!

_________________
EVERYTHING that CAN fly should be ALLOWED to FLY!
IWO JIMA'S best narative..."GOD ISN'T HERE"
http://www.amazon.com/God-Isnt-Here-Ame ... 0976154706


P: Noise coming from under instrument panel. Sounds like a midget pounding on something with a hammer.

S: Took hammer away from midget.

Be sure that you ,...uh,.. acquire any special mask tools, etc... before you leave. They might come in handy. We renew all of our survival gear annually. Water, batteries, granola bars . Everything else is non perishable or is changed by the date stamp ( flares ). That's just the stuff in the seat kits.

_________________
"You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind each blade of grass..."
Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto

Are there special certifications/licenses required in the civilian world? Or would military experience/training be okay? I love doing this job, and this would be a great time filler.


Mike in Florida
USAF Aircrew Life Support
"Your Life Is Our Business"

Ordinance certification, ALSS and PR (Navy) type ratings and certs are not required in the civillian land.

It would prove invaluable if you went to work for a civillian contractor to the military though. Most programs certified under 3710.1 or COMNAVINST 4790 require the military schools and certs, but the training is not authorized for contractors.

_________________
If God had wanted man to fly behind a flat motor, Pratt Whitney would've built one.

I have a line on a government contractor position after retirement doing the same thing. I hold a 7 level in the AF as an Aircrew Life Support Craftsman or as we are now called Aircrew Flight Equipment as Life Support and Survival Equipment has merged into one career field. I've worked everything from OV-10's, F-15's, T-38's to various versions/modifications of the C-130.


Mike in Florida
USAF Aircrew Life Support
"Your Life Is Our Business"

Mike, Martin Baker is looking for qualified folks, those who have Martin Baker experience may have an advantage. The focus is fitting out the USAF T-38s with the lightweight seat that went into the NASA T-38s here in Houston.

_________________
"You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind each blade of grass..."
Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto

I was an Aircrew Life Support Specialist at Dover AFB for 4 years & Retired on a Medical Discharge. I know some Life Support Retirees continue to work at some of the smaller bases. There's no substitute for years of experience. Willow Grove NAS had at least one Civilian Retiree LS Specialist working there. Very bizarre "rules" these days too... I noticed some Active Duty folks wearing Civilian clothes, etc, while on the job. ?????? What's up with that??
We always had to wear a clean, starched BDU Uniform & spit-shined Boots...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v674/ ... pport1.jpg

Digger

My Jack Daniels is fresh, the deck of cards is sealed, and I re-string the banjo every 6 months...

_________________
REMEMBER THE SERGEANT PILOTS!

Mike -

I think the answer you're looking for is NO...there are no required inspection intervals for helmets, masks, and other 'ALSE' like there are for the USAF...in warbirds. Guys who fly aerobatics obviously have chute pack rules they need to follow, but that's a slightly different question than the one I think you're asking.

You should see the sorry state of many of the HGUs that warbird drivers use. Most of them either plunked down a big chunk of change once to have Flightsuits.com make them a helmet, or they've ordered one off eBay, and have NEVER done anything to it except wear it. Never inspected, and things that have broken or worked their way loose are no kidding held on with zip ties or duct tape.

It all comes down to dollars. The place where the dollars are 'needed' are on the airplane and not on the helmet -- which, for most is just a glorified way to hang a headset on their skull that just also happens to have a mic and sunglasses attached to it.

Haven't seen that at any flying assignment I've ever been at. Care to share specifics where you saw that?

Thanks Sir, I'd work on them for free just to keep myself busy. Between my AF disability and Civil Service disability, and the contrator slot if I get it, this would be more or less a hobby/love/my small contribution.


Mike in Florida
USAF Aircrew Life Support
"Your Life Is Our Business"

Very bizarre "rules" these days too... I noticed some Active Duty folks wearing Civilian clothes, etc, while on the job. ?????? What's up with that??


I know that ART's Air Reserve Technicians aka Full time reservists wear civilian clothes to work. I was/am an ART, but I'm on extended AD awaiting medical retirement orders.


Mike in Florida
USAF Aircrew Life Support
"Your Life Is Our Business"

By the way...

Thank you for all the hard work you do to keep aviators' equipment in tip top shape!

I think that LS troops often get forgotten in the process, and you guys bust your hump working on something that often doesn't ever benefit you directly. Your contributions ARE noticed, even if they aren't spoken by the aviators you support.

There is precedence for this. In certain overseas locations, notably in Special Ops and ISR, some active duty members may be required to wear civilian clothes in order to maintain a "low profile" in the host country. Depending on the individual country and political climate, some members may never wear uniforms except for the actual aircrew. But, to answer the question, I've never heard of it happening in the States for active duty folks.