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Wednesday, December 5, 2007 - 8:30 AM
Air Force Assessment of Material Deployed in Southwest Asia
The Air Force Corrosion Prevention and Control Office (AFCPCO) in conjunction with the Air Force Aerospace Ground Support Equipment Liaison Office initiated a coordinated project to assess the effects of extended operations in the Southwest Asia (SWA) Area of Responsibility (AOR) as they relate to AGE equipment. Additionally, this survey will facilitate developing a “cost of corrosion” and attempt to quantify lost equipment and attrition rates. This assessment includes observation of the effects of the sand and dust intrusion, analysis of sands from various locations in the AOR, and a comparison of corrosion prevention and control policies and inspection requirements from pre-war to the present time. For the Air Force, the SWA AOR consists of locations from Afghanistan to South Africa that include varied weather and environmental conditions. The corrosion, dust intrusion, and erosion related concerns include AGE, vehicles, and mobile communication/electronic equipment. Adverse impact on equipment has been dramatically increased due to the accelerated operations tempo, a lack of adequate resources for equipment washing and lack of adequate infrastructure needed to support an effective corrosion prevention and control program in the AOR. A synopsis of the assessment and recommendations to date are presented in this paper.