By Denny Ludlow
TAV-8 Aircraft Shop Supervisor

Sonya Hollister, an airframes worker on the TAV-8 Upgrade Line, has been selected as Naval Air Depot Cherry Point’s April Safety Professional.

Hollister was performing a security inspection during the installation of engine intake duct suction doors. While peering into a very tight and remote location, she saw what appeared to be a structural crack in the upper section of the intake. Subsequent inspection of this highly critical area by examiner and evaluators, and members of the Quality Assurance Department confirmed that a structural crack did exist and a corrective work order was initiated.

The intake area of the Harrier is subjected to extremely high vibrations and is prone to the ingestion of foreign objects, which in this case, could have been pieces of the aircraft itself. Hollister’s attention to detail during her inspection of this critical area allowed for additional focused evaluation.

Her actions demonstrated the highest level of proficiency and professionalism resulting in the prevention of a potential structural failure that could have ended in loss of an engine, the aircraft or, more importantly, its crew.

You might say that Hollister was made for this kind of work. Five feet tall, small of frame and with hands that easily fit into tight spaces, she gets the jobs that tend to be more difficult for her larger fellow artisans. This particular chore requires careful safety wiring in a small opening and lots of patience. If she had been a grunt during her eight years in the Marines, instead of a Harrier powerplants mechanic, she probably would have been assigned as one of the infamous “tunnel rats,” sent into small holes to seek out bad guys.

Hollister started working on Harriers at the depot in early 1999 as a contractor, and became a depot employee in September 2000. She has always liked what she does. “It is so amazing to see one of these aircraft torn down so far and then put back together,” she says. “Then to see them fire up the engine and then to see it fly again. I find it kind of amazing.”

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Cutline: Sonya Hollister, an airframes worker on the TAV-8 Upgrade Line, was selected as Naval Air Depot Cherry Point’s April Safety Professional for discovering a potentially dangerous structural crack in a small opening inside the intake duct of a Harrier. (Photo by Mike Barton)