{"id":42645,"date":"2024-05-22T22:05:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-22T22:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2024\/05\/22\/the-air-force-doesnt-know-why-maintenance-mishaps-spiked-in-2023\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:23:24","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:23:24","slug":"the-air-force-doesnt-know-why-maintenance-mishaps-spiked-in-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2024\/05\/22\/the-air-force-doesnt-know-why-maintenance-mishaps-spiked-in-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"The Air Force doesn\u2019t know why maintenance mishaps spiked in 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force has been unable to pinpoint what caused last year\u2019s costly spike in maintenance-related aircraft mishaps, according to the service\u2019s top leaders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In an interview with Air Force Times, Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin, the service\u2019s highest-ranking officer, and Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force David Flosi, its top enlisted leader, said that while attempts to find a particular culprit behind the accidents have not borne answers, the service is continuing to examine why mishaps jumped. The service is \u201cdoubling down\u201d on managing risk at the unit level, Allvin said, while ensuring airmen\u2019s training isn\u2019t rushed \u2014 potentially endangering troops who misunderstand instructions or skip steps.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2024\/04\/08\/air-forces-costliest-accidents-maintainer-injuries-rose-in-2023\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/240124-F-PJ095-9047-1.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Air Force\u2019s costliest accidents, maintainer injuries rose in 2023<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Two people died and 10 aircraft were destroyed in aviation-related mishaps in FY23 as the Air Force\u2019s most serious accidents hit a five-year high.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019re really hunting and pecking to see if there\u2019s anything specific,\u201c Allvin said of maintenance-related accidents. \u201cWe have not found a specific cause. But it certainly has caught our attention.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2024\/04\/03\/air-forces-costliest-accidents-maintainer-injuries-rose-in-2023\/\" target=\"_blank\">most serious non-combat mishaps jumped to a five-year high in fiscal year 2023<\/a>, while at the same time, accidents occurring during ground maintenance nearly doubled from from the previous year, Air Force Times previously reported. The incidents have cost the service millions of dollars and injured a growing number of maintainers as the Air Force\u2019s stretched-thin maintenance corps juggles an aging aircraft fleet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among the most serious incidents, Stephanie Rodriguez-Cosme, a 32-year-old test engineer and contractor, died after she was struck by an MQ-9 Reaper drone\u2032s whirring propeller during ground testing at Grey Butte Airfield, California, in September.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.afjag.af.mil\/Portals\/77\/AIB-Reports\/2023\/7SEP23%20AFMC%20MQ-9A%20GRAY%20BUTTE%20AIRFIELD%20AIB%20Report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">An Air Force investigation<\/a> said Cosme<b> <\/b>was incorrectly trained on taking data readings with the drone\u2019s engine running, and wasn\u2019t paying close attention as she approached the aircraft. Investigators also cited a lack of clear communication between contractors and ground support personnel, and said they were rushed because of previous delays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Aircraft engines, towing mishaps and wayward flashlights have also caused problems. In one case, a handheld flashlight caused about $4 million in damages to an F-35 assigned to the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke AFB, Arizona, after it was sucked into an engine during a ground run, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2024\/01\/19\/misplaced-flashlight-in-f-35-engine-results-in-4-million-in-damage\/\">an investigation revealed<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In two cases, maintainers encountered damage while installing engines in CV-22 Ospreys, including a winch cable that broke, damaging several components.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOur older aircraft are finding new and interesting ways to break,\u201d Allvin acknowledged.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2024\/04\/23\/air-force-maintenance-mishaps-are-rising-can-a-worksheet-fix-it\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"185\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170412-F-GG870-076.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Air Force maintenance mishaps are rising. Can a worksheet fix it?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">A new risk worksheet introduced by Air Education and Training Command aims to get to the root of maintainer mishaps.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mishaps arising during maintenance have particularly concerned Air Education and Training Command, which said in February that \u201cpreventable\u201d accidents have accounted for more than $50 million in damages since September 2018. In February,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2024\/04\/23\/air-force-maintenance-mishaps-are-rising-can-a-worksheet-fix-it\/\" target=\"_blank\"> the command rolled out a two-page worksheet<\/a> that it is now requiring each of its active duty and civilian maintainers fill out before taking on a new task as a way to assess risk and enforce safety protocols.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But operational risk management goes beyond safety, Allvin said. He doesn\u2019t want the \u201ccumulative impacts\u201d of the service\u2019s push to build <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2022\/10\/03\/air-force-overhauls-pre-deployment-training-for-a-new-era-in-combat\/\" target=\"_blank\">multi-capable airmen<\/a> \u2014 aiming to equip troops with skills outside of their work specialty to make the force more nimble \u2014 to detract from maintainers\u2019 focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe concept of operational risk management is not something that should just be seen as a safety thing,\u201d he said. \u201cIt needs to be something that we\u2019re more comfortable with really turning into a science, really understanding not only what the makeup of my crew is, but what is the makeup of my crew today? Where are we today? What is the cumulative stress we\u2019ve had?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Flosi added that as the Air Force\u2019s training enterprise evolves, it hopes to adopt technology that will improve how airmen qualify to work on multimillion-dollar aircraft and the weapons and sensors they carry.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2023\/04\/07\/top-air-force-recruiter-predicts-maintainer-security-forces-shortage\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/230313-F-YU621-9968.jfif_.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Top Air Force recruiter predicts maintainer, security forces shortage<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">As of the end of March, the midpoint of fiscal 2023, the Air Force was less than halfway to its active duty recruiting goal.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019re not going to take risk in these safety-of-life issues and bring in somebody that\u2019s completely unqualified to load an aircraft with explosives,\u201d said Flosi, a career munitions maintainer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the same time, with the help of retention bonuses, the service has begun <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2023\/04\/07\/top-air-force-recruiter-predicts-maintainer-security-forces-shortage\/\" target=\"_blank\">to stop the downward spiral as experienced maintainers<\/a> leave the service, though Allvin said those numbers are \u201cstill not comfortable.\u201d Short staffing, coupled with the high operational tempo of the past two decades and airplanes that get harder to fix as they age, has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/02\/08\/the-air-force-still-has-a-serious-maintainer-staffing-problem-gao-says-but-no-strategy-to-fix-it\/\" target=\"_blank\">frustrated the service\u2019s maintainer corps<\/a> for years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force had exceeded its recruiting target for aircraft maintainers for the current fiscal year by more than 60 airmen as of mid-May, with nearly 3,600 new maintainers shipped to basic military training so far in fiscal year 2024,<b> <\/b>according to the Air Force Recruiting Service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But a gap of more than 500 maintainers persists, according to the most recent figures from the Air Force Personnel Center, and the newest recruits are still years away from working on airplanes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019re recruiting OK, but it takes a while to build a 3-level into a 5- and 7-level,\u201d Allvin said, referring to the progression in skill from apprentice to journeyman to craftsman. \u201cI think we\u2019re making progress. The retention initiatives seem to be working OK. We\u2019re not to the point where we need to be, though.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While the cause of a spike in maintenance-related accidents remains elusive, the Air Force said its maintainer recruitment has 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