CE completing the training

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Jared Duhon
  • 436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  Members of Team Dover's 436th Civil Engineer Squadron Engineering Flight, conducted a mock crash grid as part of yearly refresher training April 17, 2013, in an empty field in Dover Del.

Aircraft parts were randomly placed around a field to ensure proper use of GPS equipment and each piece was cataloged for the scenario of two aircraft hitting head on and falling to the ground.

"We are required to complete annual crash grid training," said Staff Sgt. Kevin Lensie, 436th Civil Engineer Squadron NCO in charge of the engineering project management and execution support. "This year's mock not only meets our yearly requirement but also allows some reservist hands on training with the equipment."

The GPS equipment used was the 5700 and the R8 3 series.

"Each system uses the same thing, the R8 3 is newer and more compact," said Lensie. "They both require a base station; the stations collect GPS information from the different satellites to get a precise location. The longer it has time to read the better the reading."

Both of these systems use a secondary device to measure the distance from the base station to the center of the piece of wreckage.

"Each point is painstakingly measured and documented to ensure the investigators know exactly where each piece was in case they need to recreate the scene," said Lensie. "We also use this equipment to document Dover Air Force Base's layout."

The Engineering Flight is in charge of documenting new buildings and any buildings being torn down.

"The information from the surveys of Dover is used to improve our emergency response tool used by emergency personnel," said James Hoff 436th Civil Engineer Squadron supervisory cartographer. "It is also used to help create the base maps."

The training keeps the engineers sharp and ready for worldwide deployment.

"Making sure everyone is up-to-date with the equipment makes deployments run smoother when surveys are done," said Master Sgt. Charles Stubblebine, 436th Civil Engineer Squadron superintendent of the Engineering Flight. "If any of the points are off it may disrupt the whole investigation."