A crowd of family, friends and loved ones gathered at Southbank Hotel Jacksonville Riverwalk to celebrate the achievements of Fleet Readiness Center Southeast's (FRCSE) 2023 Trades Apprenticeship Program graduates on Friday, Aug. 4.

In industrial environments like those at Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE), the proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE) is critical to workforce safety. From basic PPE like safety glasses and earplugs to more advanced equipment like respirators, each piece helps minimize an employee’s exposure to potential hazards associated with the maintenance, repair and overhaul of military aircraft and their components. 

Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) recently hosted a group of Craven County School teachers as part of an externship program focused on preparing students for careers in industry.

Five educators from local schools participated in the externship program that took place at FRCE with two sessions held in late June. The sessions each lasted four days and introduced teachers to FRCE’s workforce and operations

Named after ASN (RDA) Dr. Delores M. Etter, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy Top Scientists and Engineers of the Year Award recognizes the best military and civilian engineers and scientists while inspiring the field’s future generations. Only the top engineers and scientists are considered for this accolade to recognize their exceptional achievements and contributions to the department of defense. The highly competitive selection process illustrates the level of excellence and professionalism exhibited by the Navy’s best and brightest in the engineering community.

Since its establishment in 1943, Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) has grown and adapted to meet ever-changing national defense needs. Today, teams of expert artisans, engineers and logisticians support state-of-the-art maintenance, repair and overhaul of the military’s most advanced aircraft platforms, often in buildings that date back to the depot’s World War II beginnings.

A small team of mechanics at Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) keeps the production lines rolling at the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul facility. FRCE’s Ground Support Branch repairs and maintains the vital ground support equipment used to move aircraft, transport parts, test systems and perform other critical functions that support aircraft production efforts at the depot.

A first for the Navy! On June 20, 2023 Fleet Readiness Center Southwest (FRCSW) pilot, CDR Matthew Ostrye, was dispatched to Fallon, Nevada in order to ferry an E2D aircraft assigned to VAW-113 to Naval Air Station North Island. Ferrying of aircraft in order to enact repairs is a normal occurrence for FRCSW’s personnel, but this time was different. The E2 was to be flown without a rotodome, the large circular “top” to the aircraft.

Training developed and conducted at Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) has made a real-world impact on flight line readiness. The training provides the Marine Corps with the capabilities to bolster the number of mission-capable AV-8B Harriers while ensuring aircraft safety, and is now being applied to next-generation aircraft including the F-35 Lightning II.

The U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon is a multi-mission, militarized 737 behemoth. It conducts maritime patrol and reconnaissance, long-range anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, search and rescue and intelligence missions.

Clearly, the P-8A and the aircrew who fly it play a vital role in supporting the Navy’s mission.

Fleet Readiness Center East’s (FRCE) UH-1N Huey production line is swapping out diesel-powered ground power units (GPU) for a sustainable alternative with the recent purchase of battery-powered GPUs, becoming the first adapter of this technology within the Naval Aviation community.

According to Allen Broadway, FRCE’s UH-1N branch head, the battery-powered GPUs minimize energy consumption, increase efficiency and enhance workplace safety.