Desert duty: 442nd civil engineers in Iraq

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. William Huntington
  • 442nd Fighter Wing public affairs
WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. --  Members of the 442nd Civil Engineer Squadron are now on the downhill side of an expeditionary combat support deployment to Kirkuk Air Base, Iraq, but have shown no sign in slacking off of a full work schedule.

In typical 442nd CES fashion, the engineers have had a busy deployment providing base operating support at an airfield their wing mates help open during Operation Iraqi Freedom three years ago.

The Engineering Flight has programmed more than $4.25 million in infrastructure projects to improve the base and airfield, as well as ongoing maintenance projects such as road repair.

The projects include runway seal and spall repair which involved closing an active runway and moving a Mobile Aircraft Arresting System and a project to improve the roads and drainage around the Army living area.

On the operations side of the engineering business, each of the shops are heavily involved in work projects.

The Electrical shop is converting existing systems from US style 110 volt, 60 Hertz power to European style 220 volt, 50 Hertz enabling the base to use native power, simplifying and standardizing power generation requirements.

The Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning troops are working hard getting things ready to keep folks warm while Structures, Power Production, and Utilities shops are busy filling work orders. Entomology is taking care of snakes and stray dogs.

Rounding out the group, the firefighters, also known as the "Fire Dawgs," have had a full plate too with controlled burns, fire prevention week activities and responding to calls.

The Engineers kept up the pace even when not on duty and typical of their "above and beyond" attitude was Staff Sgt. Mark Kuhaneck.

"(We) agreed to take on the project to improve the quality of life of the people - Army and Air Force - who used the (laundry) facility. We asked for volunteers and Sergeant Kuhaneck offered his assistance."said Senior Master Sgt. Eric Osen, 506th CES utilities superintendent.

"I had some experience in this type of repair work, so I volunteered," Sergeant Kuhaneck said.

He and his crew spent numerous hours over three days inspecting and cleaning each unit. They repaired the ones that could be "saved" and replaced those that couldn't. The group inspected 40 washers and 70 dryers, replacing 10 washers and repaired 29 dryers. During the inspection and serving, they also cleaned the dryer vents, eliminating a potential fire hazard and improving their efficiency.

"The work needed to be done," said Sergeant Kuhaneck. "So we stepped up and did it."

Tech. Sgt. Gene Lappe contributed to this story.