JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- --
EDITORS NOTE: The first version of this story had an error, sewage was used instead of storm line. We apologize for this mistake.
The 773d Civil Engineering Squadron’s Horizontal Maintenance operators keep the roads, parking lots, and flight lines cleared of ice and snow with the help of the only snowmelter in the U.S. Air Force’s inventory, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.
During the winter months, crews work 24/7, allowing the base to stay operational. Much of the snow is stockpiled and loaded into dump trucks that take the snow to a dumping area where another bulldozer flattens it. They also use a very unique piece of equipment, a Trecan Snowmelter.
Trecan manufactures snowmelters for commercial airports across the globe. The 773d CES was able to purchase a prototype model back in 2000, and has used it ever since to help keep the snow removal process efficient.
“The snowmelter can melt 18 loader buckets in just 15 minutes, and is run by only two operators,” said Tim Kinsey, 773d CES mechanic. “We constantly feed the machine, running it 24/7, with the exception of shutting it down to refuel and make repairs if needed.”
Keeping the flight line clear of snow and ice is a primary concern. With the snowmelter being mobile and only needing a storm line to drain into, crews are able to quickly clear large areas. This in turn keeps aircraft operational to complete the mission.
“Without the snowmelter we’d need those two loader operators plus anywhere from five to ten dump truck operators just to keep the loaders moving as efficiently as they would with the snowmelter,” said Staff Sgt. Kenny Johnson, an Air National Guardsman deployed to the 773d CES. “It saves a lot of man power. The further we are from the snow dumps, or the gates, the more efficient we are.”
After receiving so much snow this winter, the JBER snow dump site is nearly at capacity. This means a majority of the snow will be melted. Already having served more than 300 operational hours this season, the snowmelter is far from completing its job. Until the sun finishes melting the snow, the 773d Airmen will keep melting away.