Taking care of government vehicles

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Roger Johnson
  • 35th Logistics Readiness Squadron commander
MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan --  Each day, the 35th Fighter Wing's highly-trained pilots strap on our fleet of F-16 Wild Weasel aircraft to sharpen the "point on the tip of the spear." At the end of each day, they return the aircraft to the Air Force's finest aircraft maintenance professionals in the 35th Maintenance Group who maintain the health and readiness of the fleet. Similarly, the Air Force's finest vehicle maintenance professionals in the 35th Logistics Readiness Squadron's Vehicle Management Flight maintain the health and readiness of Misawa's 1,050 vehicle fleet worth more than 70 million dollars. The difference between our fleet of aircraft and our fleet of vehicles; however, is that the base's vehicle fleet remains in the hands of the users on a daily basis. To a large extent then, the general care and upkeep of our government vehicle fleet rests with you, the users and operators -- and you have done a great job, contributing to the base exceeding a 90 percent vehicle mission capable rate for the past 12 months.

I do want to pass along some trends that I've seen in my time with the 35th LRS that will help us improve on an already impressive record. The 35th LRS spends nearly $1 million a year to maintain Misawa's vehicle fleet; with approximately $125,000 of that coming from vehicle accident and abuse cases. Unlike repair and maintenance costs resulting from normal wear and tear or scheduled and unscheduled maintenance actions, which comes out of the LRS budget, costs resulting from accident and abuse cases are charged directly to the responsible unit. So each time somebody damages a government vehicle, their unit loses money that could otherwise have gone toward funding other readiness or quality of life initiatives. Here are some common reasons for accident and abuse cases that we see: 

· Failure to report malfunctions, defects or damage to vehicle management within 24 hours. (35 FW Instruction 24-302 directs members to turn vehicles, and a copy of the completed standard form 91, Operator's Report of Motor Vehicle Accident, into Vehicle Management Customer Service Center within 24 hours after being released from the accident scene). 

· Operating a vehicle with improperly inflated tires or tires worn beyond serviceable limits. Some proper tire care tips include not mixing different tires and tread patterns; maintaining proper tread depth (you can use a penny by turning it upside down and placing it between the treads of the tire; if you can see the top of President Lincoln's head, the tire probably requires maintenance). In addition, most of our larger vehicles have tires equipped with tread depth "wear" bars. Anytime a tire reaches or exceeds the "wear" bar, bring it in for maintenance. Rotate tires and maintain proper alignment (watch for inconsistent tire wear on different tires or on the same tire). 

· Damage resulting from the operator or passenger failing to securely hold doors while opening or closing them in windy conditions. (If able, park vehicles facing into the wind or ask about having straps added to prevent wind from over stressing door hinges). 

· The Logistics Readiness Squadron also recommends that users/operators wash vehicles weekly due to our closeness to the ocean and the corresponding corrosive sea air.

If you have further questions about how to properly maintain your government vehicle, contact your unit's vehicle control noncommissioned officer (VCNCO) or contact the Vehicle Management Flight directly at 226-2429.

Although we often take our government vehicles for granted, they are critical to the success of our mission, expedite our ability to respond to various situations, and protect our people from Misawa's sometimes harsh weather. If we continue to take care of them, they will continue to take care of us.