MECH Magazine Vol.66 No.1

ON JUNE 30, 2020, TWO VFA-32 AVIONICS TECHNICIANS WERE WORKING ON AN F/A-18F IN ONE OF THE HANGARBAYS ON THE USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN 69).

THEIR TASK THAT EVENING INVOLVED REASSEMBLING THE JOINT HELMET-MOUNTED CUEING SYSTEM (JHMCS) IN AN AIRCRAFT’S AFT COCKPIT. THERE ARE SEVERAL PARTS, LOTS OF FASTENERS AND CABLE CONNECTIONS IN PUTTING A SYSTEM BACK TOGETHER.

By AT3 Bryan Minneman and AT3 Anthony Klein

Amongst the work involved in the process, there is little space for parts. The parts were moved at several different points in time to create space to work in the cockpit. During the installation of the JHMCS equipment, the aircraft was moved between the hangar bays.

Due to the aircraft moving, neither of the Sailors involved recalled when the parts were moved; however, at some point, one of the last pieces that required installation made its way to the very aft section of the canopy sill. This area houses many essential parts, such as canopy seals, actuators, actuator arms, thin-layer explosives and one of the most vital sections of the canopy frame. In the aft section of the canopy sill, the area the part made its way to is very dark, painted black and the part that shifted was black as well. As work continued past shift turnover, the two Sailors decided they had gotten to the point they needed to turn the job over to the next shift.

As an all tools accounted for (ATAF) evolution was being completed on the toolbox, the other Sailor was closing up the jet. The first function is shutting the canopy. There are multiple steps in closing and verifying the canopy sill is clear of all foreign objects and debris (FOD) is one of them. This step was not performed thoroughly that night. While shutting the canopy, just before it met the canopy sill, both Sailors heard a relatively loud “pop.” They stopped the evolution immediately and proceeded to reopen the canopy and check the source of the noise. While one Sailor checked the noise source, the other went to inform the Aviation Structural Mechanic (AME) shop of the situation.

At this point, the canopy had already

Right: Photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Chris Bartlett

Left: Photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Lauren Booher