By Mike Barton
Public Affairs Specialist

The first large deployment of civilian employees from Naval Air Depot Cherry Point, N.C., arrived in Iraq March 5 and 6 to support Marine aircraft squadrons in the desert.

Two heavy-lift aircraft ferried 15 civilians and one Marine, along with more than 61 tons of equipment, arriving on Iraqi soil under the cover of darkness late March 5 and early March 6. The employees set up an integrated maintenance detachment and almost immediately began performing depot-level repair work on Marine H-46 and H-53 helicopters. Members of the initial all-volunteer group are scheduled to spend up to 179 days in the Middle East, with replacements and supplemental teams sent over as needed until the mission is no longer required by the Marine Corps.

Prior to this deployment, an average of four to six NADEP artisans were in Iraq at any given time, with more portable equipment, says Randy Gay, the depot’s sustainment project coordinator for Operation Iraqi Freedom. This larger group is armed with heavy-duty equipment that will allow much more in-depth maintenance designed to help the Marines keep their aircraft flying longer between repair visits here in the United States. Depot artisans will link with local contract teams provided by the aircraft manufacturers.

The detachment’s primary mission includes battle-damage repair and basic
in-service repair, including repair of the aircraft’s surface skin, thorough clean up and thorough airframe corrosion repair. “They will add a very good service to the fleet,” says Maj. Allen L. Gilbert, the depot’s H-46 programs officer. “These are artisans with multiple trades who can take care
of many things while they are there working as a team with the 2d Marine Aircraft Wing.”

Although the mission is not without risk, the detachment is located on a “very secure” air base in Iraq, says Gilbert. Detachment members have been trained to respect the cultural differences in the country where they will be guests for the next six months, as well as how to protect themselves with gas mask training and antiterrorism awareness training.

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Cutline: (Left foreground) Naval Air Depot Cherry Point engineers Steve Stone (left) and Mike Miller perform Harrier maintenance atop a Harrier on the deck of the USS Bataan during an earlier deployment to the Persian Gulf. NADEP artisans regularly travel to different parts of the world in support of combat aircraft maintenance operations to help keep American warbirds in the fight. In early March, the largest of these NADEP deployments took place when 15 artisans, one Marine and more than 61 tons of equipment were flown to Iraq to set up an integrated maintenance detachment. Initial reports back from the group indicate that they hit the ground running and their support has been well received by the combat squadrons they are supporting in theater. (Photo provided by Mike Miller)