Power Pro creates energy to sustain base operations

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Melissa Phillips
  • 407th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
Ali Base, Iraq (USAFENS) --  For almost any base in the world, electricity is considered a vital necessity and is readily available, but for deployed bases, like Ali Base, there are no permanent electricity lines piped into the installation.

It is the responsibility of the 407th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron Power Production element, also known as Power Pro, to make sure that the base has the power it needs and that the power lines run smoothly.

“No one on base can do their job to the fullest extent without electricity,” said Staff Sgt. Jeremy Schoneboom, 407th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron Power Production craftsman, who is stationed at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England.

Power Pro maintains two power plants with rows of interconnected generators and more than 100 stand-alone units at buildings throughout the installation to provide power for military operations.

While the cable infrastructure is hardened at home station facilities, at Ali Base cables are not buried deep, and are subjected to heavy foot-traffic and continual heat. Due to these conditions, power outages are almost an unavoidable part of deployment life.

“Most people take for granted they have power,” said Sergeant Schoneboom. “They don’t realize the work that goes into providing that power,” he said. “Just like in a vehicle you have to get an oil change every 3,000 miles, so you’re vehicle runs right. We have to do an oil change on the generator every 300 hours.”

With more than 100 generators under their control and more than 30 of those that require daily inspections, the Power Pro techs remain busy around the clock.

For the majority of their shift, Schoneboom and his crew don’t have the opportunity to appreciate the air conditioning their equipment generates, because they spend their time driving from location to location fixing generators.

“They installed a generator at the towers near the entry control point, so the personnel sitting inside the towers don’t have to sweat to death in those little metal, hot boxes,” said Staff Sgt. Chad Steele, 407th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron Tactical Automated Security System administrator, who is deployed from Mountain Home AFB, Idaho.

Although electricity is often used to make people’s daily lives easier, one of the services Power Pro techs provide could save a life in an emergency.

They maintain the aircraft arresting system, which is a cabling system that essentially acts as a reverse sling shot and provides enough tension to catch fighter aircraft and bring them to a complete stop.

It makes me feel good to know we are helping others, said Sergeant Schoneboom.