Metal Tech: tough job done easy

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class John D. Strong II
  • 49th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  A new plane requires new tools and different guidelines in order to be maintained properly and with the big arrival of the F-22 the Aircraft Metal Shop here has been plenty busy.

The Aircraft Metal Technicians shop is locally manufacturing tooling for theF-22A and saving Air Force $800,000.

"The Wing Integration office asked if we could do it, we had the machine capabilities but not the computer program to do it so they bought us the computer program, a water jet cutter and sent us to Denver and Albuquerque for the training," Tech. Sgt. Daniel Fraga assistant section chief of the Aircraft Metal Technicians shop. "We went to training in Denver for a week and Albuquerque for a week to learn master cam and solid works computer programming."

The talk of the Metal Tech shop taking on this task started in December 2007 and actual production of the tools began in January 2008 said Sergeant Fraga.

We did as much production as we could do before going to training, but once we came back from training production went up drastically said Sergeant Fraga.

"It's been valuable training we have received from this," said Sergeant Fraga. "A lot of us older guys in metal tech have never used some of the new materials such as polyethylene and nylon products, but we are embracing it and trying to get our customers what they need."

The metal shop has currently manufactured 73 tools and 572 parts from raw metal for different maintenance shops that will work on the F-22A. The shop is manufacturing tools for the Aircraft Maintenance Units, AMMO shop, Weapons Loaders, Engine shop, Fuel shop and Aerospace Ground Equipment.

"Right now we are creating priority one tools, which means tools that are necessary for the actual bed down and training are being manufactured now. Priority two and three tools will be distributed as soon as we make them," said Sergeant Fraga.

Some of the different equipment the shop has manufactured thus far are plane stands, center line tanks and bomb racks.

Usually a metal shop producing this amount of work is a 20 man crew but here it's just an eight man shop said Sergeant Fraga.

"We are the first base that has decided to do the majority of the local manufactures for the professionalized tooling. Hopefully the Air Force will see that a lot of things that go out for contract don't need to and can be done in house with there fabricators. The technology is out there just supply the equipment and the rest is easy."