605th AMXS breaks ice

by Airman Sean M. Crowe
Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Public Affairs

1/31/2013 - JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- The 605th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron works through less-than-ideal weather conditions to ensure the 305th Air Mobility Wing's mobility mission continues.

Aircraft deicing has come a long way in recent years said Master Sgt. Kenyon Blough 605th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron lead production superintendent.

Aircraft maintainers historically would drive simple cherry pickers to the aircraft, and then spray them down with hoses from the bucket. Maintainers now use global deicing trucks which have an enclosed compartment to control the automateddeicing nozzle, said Blough.
The 605th AMXS's service members ensure all aircraft here are free of frost and ice shortly before takeoff during the winter.

"We hold a meeting regarding the snow a week or two before the first predicted snowfall," said Blough. "We schedule deicing teams and ensure the global deicing trucks are postured for use."

Deicing teams comprise three-man teams: a global deicing truck driver, a spotter on the ground and a bucket operator who controls the deicing nozzle.

The deicing nozzle is not a water gun. The deicing nozzle uses a combination of hot air and Type 1 deicing fluid to accomplish the mission.

"Deicing fluid is more efficient at melting ice and in turn more cost effective," said Blough. "It's even more effective when propelled by hot air making the device twice as efficient as past technology."

A team sets out to deice an aircraft in the one-hour window prior to takeoff. The deicing team is notified by the maintenance operating center anytime there is frozen precipitation on an aircraft. Staff Sgt. Steven Betz, 605th AMXS flying crew chief, described a typical deicing sequence.

"The operator begins spraying at the aircraft's nose and works his way to the tail," said Betz. "We let gravity help us on our mission spraying from the top and moving down. We focus on critical areas including the flight controls and hydraulic systems as these are crucial to flight. The spotter on the ground ensures the sprayer doesn't miss any areas he might not have the best view of. We then finish by coating the aircraft in Type 4 anti-icing fluid."

Type 4 anti-icing fluid is a liquid agent which prevents the plane from icing over again before takeoff, whereas Type 1 deicing fluid is solely used for the initial deicing.

"The aircrew then double checks the aircraft to ensure we did a thorough job," said Betz.
The 605th AMXS ensures 305th Air Mobility Wing aircraft readiness throughout the New Jersey winters here. Leadership credits their mission's success to the junior service members who work tirelessly in freezing temperatures to deice aircraft.

"It takes a great deal of coordination to accomplish the timely process, from the superintendents all the way down to the truck operators," said Betz.