Editor’s Note: Our friends in the “Fiends” have a very challenging pace they’re keeping up. Between escorting B-52s during shows of force along the DMZ, joint exercises with RoKAF SLAM Eagles at home, flying with F-22s in another show of force, a TDY for another exercise in Southeast Asia, they’ve been really busy. In order to keep the Fiends’ Block 40 Vipers in the air, it falls to the 36th Aircraft Maintenance Unit, or AMU.

With hours before the start of combat readiness exercise Beverly Midnight 16-01, maintainers from the 36th Aircraft Maintenance Unit conduct final preparations and ensure the aircraft are prepared and ready … to Fight Tonight.

These Airmen ensure F-16 Fighting Falcons are prepared and ready for the grueling pace they will be required to sustain throughout readiness exercise Beverly Midnight 16-01.

The exercise focuses on readiness, testing Osan’s wartime procedures, and realistically looking at the ability to defend the base, execute operations and sustain follow-on forces.

“We are out here to ensure these jets are ready to execute both day and night missions on a continuous basis during the exercise,” said Staff Sgt. Nathan Lewis, 36th AMU dedicated crew chief. “There is quite a lot of equipment that must be taken care of and stored in specific places to make sure we are able to get aircraft in the air at a moment’s notice.”

During these combat exercise scenarios, Airmen train to launch and recover aircraft in simulated chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear environments.

The article in its entirety can be viewed right here.

(Featured photo by Staff Sgt. Benjamin Sutton/U.S. Air Force)