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Show if Hilltop Times May 26, 1994 and this It ftooEx J Photo by SMSgt. Robert Wickley Hill delivers first to Navy FA-1- 8 it belongs by TSgt. Barbara Fisher Ogden ALC Public Affairs ' V up there," Graham said as he pointed to the sky. "It looks great and I'm sure it'll fly great." ' To commemorate the event and to express the appreciation of his squadron and the Marine FA-1community, Graham presented Ogden ALC commander Maj. Gen. Lester L. Lyles with a plaque that he hoped would be placed where the workers could see it. "Thanks for this first aircraft and thank you in advance for the aircraft that are yet to come," he said. "I especially want to thank the wonderful work force who puts in the long hours, the attention to detail, and makes a machine that we're willing to get into and take up and know we're going to come back and land." The May 19 ceremony, attended by numerous local civic leaders and hundreds of Ogden ALC workers, was another in a series of milestones for Hill. It marked the culmination of a little more than five months and 5,000 hours of work. And even though the Ogden fighter experts performed more than two million hours of maintenance and modifications last year on more than 300 6 Fighting Falcons, 29 F-- 4 Phantoms and 50 Hercules (some of which also belong to the Navy), the FA-1- 8 was different or so it seemed at first. Even though the FA-1- 8 is a McDonnell-Dougla-s aircraft, like the older the workers had to learn about a different model aircraft, learn Navy procedures, technical data and another language full of new acronyms and terms.. To allow for this learning curve, the workers had 163 days after the first aircraft was received at Hill to complete the required maintenance work. For the second aircraft, they have 153 days; for the third, 143. After that the crews have 133 days to complete work on each aircraft. "I'm hopeful, and confident, that the success of this first aircraft will convince the Navy to allow us to do even more work on the FA-1in the future," Lyles said at the ceremothe "I hope ny. Navy will allow us to make sure this program becomes the premier example of interservicing for the entire Department of Defense." ' " i jf My ; It was "anchors aweigh" with an Air Force spin May 19 as the Ogden Air Logistics Center here delivered its first repaired NavyMarine FA-1- 8 Hornet Strike Fighter back to its owner the U.S. Navy. Sporting a new coat of paint that covered the recent structural enhancements and corrosion control measures it had undergone, the first FA-1- 8 Hornet refurbished by an Air Force air logistics center sat pristine as the backdrop to a ceremony marking the historic occasion. The fighter was the first of 36 NavyMarine FA-18- s that Ogden ALC expects to repair during the initial year of a multimillion-dollar contract with the Navy. Competing against civilian contractors and a Navy depot for the repair work on the Hornets, Ogden was awarded the contract in August 1993. This first aircraft, flown intc Hill AFB from Beaufort Marine Corps Air Station, S.C., by Marine pilot and Heber City, Utah, native Maj. John Crook, touched down Dec. 1. That day he told members of the news media, "I'm from Utah so I know these people will do a quality job before giving us back the plane." May 20 marked the contract deadline to return the aircraft to the Navy. The ceremony May 19 was more symbolic than true to life. Formal acceptance of the aircraft is actually marked by the government contract representative and den's FA-1- system program manager, Ross Marshall, signing a standard Defense Department form. Because this event was significant as a symbol of interser-vic-e cooperation, Lt. Col. John W. Graham, commander of the Beaufort MCAS squadron that will now fly the aircraft, participated in a short ceremony at Hill before flying the bird home. The turnover of the aircraft's maintenance log books to him by Marshall marked the transfer. "It's a good looking airplane and I'm looking forward in a few hours to strapping it on and taking it back to where 8 a p? 1 - F-1- 0 ; F-4- s, 8 . Definitely a team effort (Upper left) FA-1- 8 repair bay in Bldg, 225. (Above) Steve Morgan, left, and Richard Daylong verify engine integrity prior to installing the engines. (Lower left) Joe Vigil installs backing boards into the fuel tank. All workers shown are from the Aircraft Production Division, Aircraft Directorate. (Below) Aerial view of 8 and 0his and much, much more - Photo by Chris Bojanower the first FA-1- 8 to come off Hill's maintenance line. tfo gefl TENS! . The first FA-1- 8 Navy Fighter by the Aircraft Division Photo by SMSgt. Robert Wickloy Photo by SMSgt. Robort Wickloy Global Power and Reach for America. " "Air Force people building the world's most respected Air arid Space Force Hilltop 1 iuiaes Published by MorMedia Inc., a private firm in no way connected with the U.S. Air Force, under exclusive written contract with Hill AFB. This commercial enterprise Air Force newspaper is an authorized publication for members of the U.S. military services. Contents of the Hilltop Times are not necessarily the official views of, or endorsed by, the U.S. government, the Department of Defense or the Department of the Air Force. The appearance of advertisements in this publication, including inserts or supplements, does not constitute endorsement by the Department of the Air Force or MorMedia, Inc. of the products or services advertised.' Everything advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase, use or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, Hif! AFB Editorial Staffs Gen. Letter I. 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