In case of emergency: survival equipment

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman J. Paul Croxon
  • 319th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
GRAND FORKS AFB, N.D. --  Ten Airmen are held accountable for the lives of every aircrew member and passenger that steps aboard a 319th Air Refueling Wing tanker. 

Survival equipment Airmen, often referred to as riggers, inspect and repair the equipment aboard the KC-135 that no one wants to put to use. 

Life rafts, egress slides, parachutes and even infant life-saving equipment are routinely inspected by these Airmen who place their name on each piece, taking personal responsibility for its ability to work when called upon. 

"Every piece of equipment we inspect bears our name and the date it was checked," said Airman 1st Class Kevin Westlund, a survival equipment apprentice from Tampa, Fla. "We follow the technical orders for each piece of equipment to ensure we give the aircrews and passengers functional equipment. No one wants to be responsible for an equipment failure that could result in injury or death." 

It's not just parachutes if a plane goes down; chances are the equipment used to escape the wreckage or even survive the descent was inspected by a rigger. 

"We inspect the BA-22 back automatic parachute every six months unless a need arises for a non-routine inspection," said Tech. Sgt. Yancey Callahan, assistant non-commissioned officer in charge of survival equipment. "We also do routine inspections of 20-man and 1-man life rafts, egress slides, adult-child life preservers and various personal floatation devices." 

That arsenal of survival equipment is found on every tanker, whether flying a training mission or deploying to support the Global War on Terror. One of the more unique pieces of equipment is the infant cot. 

An infant cot is an enclosed flotation device that looks like a bright orange stroller with a plastic window. In case of emergency, infants are placed within and are protected from the elements. Every KC-135 here takes off with these, said Sergeant Callahan. 

Long confused with the life support shop who they work closely with, the two career fields are scheduled to merge into one unit by the end of next year. Life support inspects equipment on the flight line and brings it to survival equipment at regular intervals for in-depth inspections and the occasional repair. 

Once the merger is complete, one unit will be responsible for all flight line and back shop inspections and repairs. 

For anyone taking off in a KC-135 they should sit back and relax, they are flying in one of the best maintained and safest aircraft in the air. However, should any emergency happen, all they need to do is look under their seat or in the parachutes to read the name of the Airman who personally guarantees that equipment will work.