Bomb load competition sharpens skills

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Joseph Raatz
  • 2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs
BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. --  Teams from the 20th and 96th Aircraft Maintenance Units went head-to-head here Friday in the 2nd Bomb Wing's quarterly load competition.

Barksdale Airmen regularly compete against one another to determine which team is most proficient at loading a B-52H Stratofortress with a variety of ordnance.

"These rivalries help breed competitive excellence," said Staff Sgt. Justin Phillips, a squadron load crew chief with the 2nd Maintenance Group. "The competitions encourage teams to hone their skills, gaining expertise that keeps us sharp and ready to perform at the top of our game."

For this quarter's competition, a B-52 was positioned inside Barksdale's new Weapons Load Training Facility. Each four-person team readied the aircraft and loaded three M117 750lb bombs into the interior bomb bay and one GBU-12 laser-guided bomb on each of the aircraft's two exterior weapon pylons.

The teams were shadowed by four evaluators who watched the proceedings with eyes like a hawk, noting even the smallest mistakes.

"The evaluators watch for discrepancies, deducting points for each one," Phillips said. "Each team starts with 2,000 points. Points can be deducted for things like safety violations, improper technique and time. Competitors must also take a written exam and undergo a uniform inspection. The team that ends the competition with the most points is crowned the victor."

In addition to bragging rights, these competitions provide crews an opportunity to learn and polish their skills.
"We're always striving to be better," said Staff Sgt. Raymond Edgerson Jr., a weapons load crew team chief with the 96th AMU. "We have so many munitions here, the more proficient we are at any type of munition we may need to load, the better. So the more we compete, the better we'll get."

Team members also see the competitions as a way to show the world what they can do.

"They're important in part because the crews get to see that people care about how well they do," Edgerson said.

"These load competitions we compete in are absolutely morale boosters," said Staff Sgt. Jason Early, a weapons load crew team chief with the 20th AMU. "My crew takes a lot of pride in what we do; we load a lot, we work hard and this kind of competition shows the fruit of our work. Not everyone gets to compete in these, so it's an honor to do it."

After a long and arduous day, Edgerson's team emerged victorious, edging out Early's team by a handful of points.

"I'm very proud of my team," Edgerson said. "They did a great job today and I can't wait to see what they'll do in the future. Not to mention it feels awesome to win!"