18th CEG keep runway clear to land

by Senior Airman Marcus Morris
18th Wing Public Affairs

9/30/2013 - KADENA AIR BASE, Japan -- The 18th Civil Engineer Group has implemented an initiative created by Master Sgt. Richard Vaden, 18th CEG heavy equipment operator, saving the Air Force approximately $180,000; 784,000 gallons of water; and, 2,000 man hours annually.

When an aircraft lands, the tires are not spinning and, until they get up to speed, they are put under pressure and dragged, causing rubber to adhere to the runway. Over time, the deposits build up and cause the runway to become extremely slippery and greatly reduce pilot visibility of the centerline, making it harder to land safely.

In order to mitigate the risk, Kadena's 18th CEG Airmen would have to shut down the runway for hours at a time to scrub the rubber off the flightline using Avion 50 detergent; however, the process is not a quick fix.

"It took a day just to fill a water truck with Avion 50 detergent," said Airman 1st Class Travis Drouin, 18th CEG heavy equipment operator. "Also, the Avion 50 would get under our personal protection equipment leaving chemical burns."

Vaden saw not just an excruciatingly long process, he saw a safety issue.

That's why Vaden developed an initiative through the Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st Century program using an ultra high-pressure (UHP) water system to blast away the rubber deposits.

"The new process takes around 8 hours to clean a 2000 feet by 50 feet spot of the flight line, while the old way took 12 hours" said Vaden. "Also, the new process allows the Airmen to clean lines at any time and be off the flight line in 10 minutes, while the old method required all air operations for that particular runway to be suspended because the slippery detergent prevented aircraft from landing safely."

Due to sequestration, the 18th CEG had to design a new self-contained UHP system for a vehicle they already had. Not only is the machine capable of scraping off rubber from the runway like a knife, it can also strip the paint lines off, which saves the need for contractors to do the work.

"I love this new process," said Senior Airman Brandon Davis, 18th CEG heavy equipment operator. "It is 10 times easier, saves the Air Force money and we don't have to worry about chemicals getting into the grass."