An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : Media : News : News Article View
NEWS | Sept. 24, 2021

Fort Greely, FAA Partnership Keeps Planes Flying, Saves MoneyFort Greely, FAA Partnership Keeps Planes Flying, Saves Money

By R. Slade Walters

FORT GREELY, Alaska – In a partnership between U.S. Army Garrison Alaska and the Federal Aviation Administration, the FAA held an Instrument Landing System certification training course from July 14 to Aug. 24, 2021, at a maintenance hangar on Fort Greely’s Allen Army Airfield.

Weather can complicate aviation operations just about everywhere, but interior Alaska’s weather can sometimes make flying especially challenging. Safely landing an aircraft in extremely low visibility conditions is nearly impossible without ILS, which requires specialized equipment and certified technicians.

“We had the ILS, but we didn’t have any certified technicians,” said airfield manager, Darren Benson.

FAA ILS certification training normally requires sending technicians to the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City for a total of about three months, which is very costly.

Benson explained that budgeting, travel limitations caused by the global pandemic, and limited seats for Department of Defense personnel made it very difficult for Fort Greely’s airfield technicians to get the required certification training.

“We were kind of fighting to get it,” said Benson.

Art Chase, an FAA field instructor for ILS systems, was familiar with Fort Greely’s training challenges and knew the FAA also had Alaska-based technicians that needed ILS certification training.

Chase convinced the FAA to offer a hands-on ILS certification course, taught in the field in less time.

“When this came along for us, it really saved us,” said Benson.

Chase explained that access to the real-world surroundings, environment and facilities available at Fort Greely made the training especially effective. Chase and Joe Martinek, an FAA ILS instructor based in Charlotte, North Carolina, taught the course.

“The instructors are also technicians … we do flight inspection, we do repairs, we do all of the general maintenance on the systems … we bring something to the training that you can’t get in a training classroom environment,” said Chase.

Two Fort Greely Army airfield technicians, two Alaska-based FAA technicians and one Army technician from U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys in South Korea successfully completed the training.

The training allowed the Army and FAA to get airfield technicians certified faster, saved the Army more than $100,000 in travel and temporary lodging costs, and enabled the airfield to continue to support joint military operations during periods of low visibility.

“This is an exceptional example of what successful intergovernmental partnerships and agreements at all levels – borough, state, and federal – can do to save resources,” said Craig Deatrick, director of U.S. Army Installation Management Command – Pacific.

According to both Chase and Benson, both the Army and the FAA feel the course was very successful and plan to continue the partnership in the future.
CONNECT WITH USINDOPACOM
Facebook

Like Us
X
362,841
Follow Us

ENGAGE & CONNECT MORE WITH PACOM

                                                 

IN THE USINDOPACOM NEWS
Army CID Expands its Jurisdiction in Cobra Gold 2024, Major Exercise in Pacific Region
Special Agent Chow meets with Chonburi Provincial Police to discuss tactics, techniques, and procedures during Cobra Gold 2024.
March 20, 2024 - Supervisory Special Agent Erin Chow, Department of the Army Criminal Investigation, Far East Field Office became the first Army CID special agent to participate in the multinational Indo-Pacific military exercise Cobra Gold,...

U.S. Army Engineers Complete Wet Gap Crossing with the ROK Army
ROK Soldiers assigned to the 5th Corps Engineering Brigade River Crossing Company and Soldiers assigned to the 11th Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division Sustainment Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division ROK/U.S. Combined Division, complete construction on a joint bridge, during a combined wet gap crossing exercise, near the Imjin River in Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do from March 11-20, 2024. ROK and U.S. Army units utilized aviation, armor, air defense, chemical, biological and defense capabilities to train the security and protection of the site during the exercise that was designed to verify interoperability through the construction of a joint pontoon bridge. (U.S. Army photo by Pak, Chin-U)
March 20, 2024 - The 11th Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division Sustainment Brigade, 2nd Infantry-ROK/U.S. Combined Division joins forces with the ROK army 5th Engineer Brigade to participate in a combined wet gap crossing training...

Statement from Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on the Upcoming Trilateral Leaders’ Summit of the Philippines, Japan, and the United States
Graphic intended for use as a placeholder for Statements and Press Releases without accompanying imagery.
March 19, 2024 - President Biden will host President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. of the Philippines and Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan on April 11 at the White House for the first trilateral U.S.-Japan-Philippines leaders’ summit...

Lightning from the South Korean Sky: 5th ANGLICO at Warrior Shield 24
March 19, 2024 - To strengthen crisis response in the Indo-Pacific region, U.S. Marines with 5th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company, III Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group, and the Republic of Korea Marine Corps conducted exercise...

Readout of Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III's Call With Indian Minister of Defense Rajnath Singh
Graphic intended for use as a placeholder for Statements and Press Releases without accompanying imagery.
March 18, 2024 - Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder provided the following readout...