Dyess NDI best in AFGSC

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Kylee Thomas
  • 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs

The 7th Equipment Maintenance Squadron Nondestructive Inspection laboratory team earned the 2018 Air Force Global Strike Command NDI lab of the year award.

The lab earned this award after receiving a phenomenal rating from an inspection they had from the AFNDI Program Office on job knowledge, equipment programs, training methods and more.

I am extremely proud of the hard work everyone has put in to make the inspection a success,” said Tech. Sgt. Jonathan Heindel, 7th EMS NDI craftsman. “We really have an outstanding group of men and women here.”

The team received the award by excelling in their performance, safety practices, adherence to Air Force Occupational Safety and Health (AFOSH) standards and Air Force Instructions. They prepared for the inspection by thoroughly vetting their day-to-day practices in accordance with our Continuity Programs, which guides or instructs them for what they as a lab need to accomplish to ensure base, local, federal and NDI specific compliance.

This team of 15 people is responsible for inspecting the insides of metal objects used on Dyess’ B-1B Lancers and C-130J Super Hercules, as well as identifying possible defects in systems and equipment. Utilizing everything from x-rays to ultrasound, these Airmen find the smallest imperfections and take the corrective measures needed to keep Air Force equipment working safely.

 “Our shop is particularly small compared to most other NDI labs since we have such few personnel,” said Staff Sgt. David Situ, 7th EMS NDI craftsman. “It’s humbling to know that even though we may be small, we were still able to prove ourselves better than all of the other NDI labs in Air Force Global Strike Command.”

With this being the first time Dyess’ NDI lab won this award since 2001, the Airmen are extremely proud of all their hard work after being named the best amongst the other eight labs within AFGSC.

“We do our job the best we can every day without the thought of whether or not we’ll receive any awards,” said Situ. “However, earning this award has showed us that all of our hard work has been recognized and we couldn’t be more proud of ourselves.”