Taxiway Markings

  • Published
  • By Maj. Phil Sheridan
  • 14th Flying Training Wing Chief of Flight Safety
COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  For a pilot training base that produces over 59K sorties and 82K hours, the members of the 14th Flying Training Wing hold a remarkably high safety record. In my opinion the catalyst for such an achievement is teamwork.

An example of such teamwork occurred recently and all it took was one instructor pilot to speak up and say "this doesn't look right". Following a typical student sortie, an instructor pilot began to talk with his buddies about how his student incorrectly followed the taxiway edge line instead of the centerline. As a result he had to take the aircraft from the student in order to prevent a mishap.

After speaking up, several other instructors also admitted that they had seen the same thing and that the newly painted lines seemed a little confusing. One of the instructors then called the Operations Group Standardization/Evaluation section and let them know about the issue. Group Stan/Eval then immediately called Wing Safety and asked if we could take a look at the runway markings and assess whether or not they were a hazard. Within 24 hours Wing Safety and Airfield management were working together to evaluate the potential hazard and determine the magnitude of the required fix. Within 48 hours of the call, Civil Engineering was involved generating a plan to fix the problem in house and after hours with minimal cost and impact to the mission.

The sole reason that multiple organizations within the 14th Flying Training Wing were able to get together, address a problem, and come up with a solution in such a short period of time, is that they maintain a solid rapport. I cannot imagine any other organization, civil or military, for which a project of this magnitude would be handled in less than 48 hours with everyone working together. The working relationship between units in this wing truly is unmatched and stands as a true testament to the caliber of people that comprise Columbus Air Force Base.