Dover Air Force Base opens first-ever Regionalized ISO

Published June 12, 2007
By Senior Airman James Bolinger
436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. -- The 436th and 512th Maintenance Groups cut the ribbon at the Air Force's first regionalized Isochronal Inspection Dock June 1.

Brig. Gen. Robert McMahon, Air Mobility Command director of logistics, was on hand to help celebrate the historic event here.

"I consider this an extremely historic day," said General McMahon. "Not only for Dover Air Force Base, not only for Air Mobility Command, but for the United States Air Force."

Dover is now the only active-duty C-5 ISO Dock for the entire Air Force. Two other C-5 ISO Docks will stand up over the next year, one for Air Force Reserve Command at Westover Air Reserve Base, Mass., and one at West Virginia Air National Guard Base, Martinsburg, W.V., for the ANG.

"We start today with a Regionalized Isochronal Inspection ability that we have never had before," said the general.

The goal of a Regionalized ISO Dock is to save money and time, according to the general. The Air Force expects to save around $51 million by regionalizing C-5 ISO inspections.

By regionalizing C-5 ISO inspections, the availability days of C-5s throughout the Air Force is increased by 900 a year, or approximately 2.5 more C-5s available to carry cargo every day, said General McMahon.

"This equates to about 10,000 more pallets per year of lift capability, simply by changing our process," he said. "The savings that we generate by not buying additional aircraft underscores well the fact that we are good stewards of our taxpayers' dollars.

A C-5 takes 14 days to pass through Dover's ISO Dock where every piece of the plane is inspected and any broken or worn parts are replaced.

Dover was chosen to be the active duty Regionalized C-5 ISO Dock because of its extensive Lean initiatives. Dover reduced the ISO process from approximately 38 days to 14.

Regionalizing ISO Docks is a new way of doing business in the Air Force, said General McMahon.

"If the system works here and at the other two locations then we will begin to regionalize ISO Docks for other aircraft," he said.

The KC-135 will be the next aircraft to have regionalized ISO Docks, according to the general.

"We have come a long way from having a C-5 'can' bird on the ground," said Col. Willie Cooper, 512th Maintenance Group commander. "We used to have a bird on the ground that we cannibalized for parts. The aircraft itself was its own forward supply point. Everyone had one, and that aircraft was not available for the fight. We've come a long way."