U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rodrigo Lerer, an airframe

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rodrigo Lerer, an airframe mechanic with Marine All-Weather Fighter Attack Squadron VMFA(AW) 242, stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, tightens safety wire on the wing panels of an F/A-18D Hornet aircraft during exercise Red Flag-Alaska 16-2 in Thunder Dome hangar at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, June 7, 2016. The adjustments being performed on one of the squadron’s F/A-18D Hornet aircraft are part of inspections, also known as ‘phases.’ There are four phases an aircraft goes through: alpha, bravo, charlie and delta. They are performed after 200 hours of flight time and include more in-depth inspections called non-destructive inspections. During the inspections, the Marines confirm the metal hasn’t deteriorated and there’s no bonding, breaks, tears and breakage. The phases can be very time-consuming and difficult to do but are very important to ensure the pilots fly safely.

aerial ftx multinational mcas iwakuni flight line capability aircraft jet exercise mission training deployment multi role multilateral tdy red flag alaska air combat marine all weather fighter attack squadron 242 rf a integrated vmfa aw 242 jparc joint pacific alaska range complex indo asia pacific simulated combat environment marinesdeployed lance cpl donato maffin marine corps air station iwakuni eielson air force base phases dvids ultra high resolution high resolution us marine corps alaska

07/06/2016

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