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Grissom maintainers tops in 4th AF

  • Published
  • By Tech Sgt. Benjamin Mota
  • 434th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. --  The 434th Maintenance Group was named the recipient of the 2015 Chief Master Sergeant James K. Clouse Maintenance Excellence trophy.

The award is presented to recognize excellence among maintenance organizations within Fourth Air Force.

This annual award recognizes the Fourth Air Force maintenance organization that has achieved the highest standards in safety, mission support, demonstrated ingenuity, mission accomplishments and maintenance excellence.

The Fourth Air Force logistics directorate convenes a board of senior maintenance noncommissioned officers to select the unit that best exemplifies the concepts recognized by this award. Chief Clouse stood out as an individual who exemplified continuous improvement and value-added change.

As the concept of the trophy crystallized in the early 1980s, an aircraft maintenance equipment specialist on the Fourth Air Force Logistics Maintenance staff, Chief Clouse, was diagnosed with terminal cancer. He succumbed to the disease in 1984.

As a way to honor the significant contributions of Clouse in the career field and as a way to adequately recognize the exceptional job being accomplished by aircraft maintenance people, it was decided that a permanent, revolving trophy awarded annually for maintenance excellence, mission support, ingenuity, cost effectiveness, flight safety, aircraft reliability and maintainability would be established.

The 434th ARW is the largest KC-135R Stratotanker in the Air Force Reserve Command. Airmen and aircraft from the 434th ARW routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission and U.S. strategic objectives.

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