Tactical Aircraft Maintenance (A-10)

You are training to be an F-22A Aircraft Maintainer — a specialist on America's premier air superiority fighter. The F-22 is older than the F-35 but remains the most capable air-to-air combat aircraft in the world, and the maintenance specialists who keep it flying are responsible for sustaining that advantage.

Complete 2A3X3 initial skills training at Sheppard AFB, TX. Learn F-22A aircraft systems — airframe structure, the F119 engine interface, avionics integration, low observable materials and coatings, fuel systems, hydraulics, and the aircraft's advanced mission systems. Study the technical orders for the F-22 and learn the maintenance procedures specific to this platform. Understand the Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS) and its application to F-22 maintenance documentation. Learn the specific safety requirements for working on a fighter that has both stealth materials and advanced weapon systems integration.

• 01F-22A systems knowledge (airframe, F119, avionics, LO materials), ALIS maintenance documentation, F-22-specific safety procedures, technical order compliance, low observable awareness, weapon system integration awareness

• —F-22 technical orders and maintenance manuals, F-22 SPO publications, AFMAN applicable to F-22 operations, Sheppard AFB 2A3X3 training publications

• —Pass 2A3X3 initial training; F-22 systems knowledge demonstrated; ALIS documentation correct; safety procedures followed; initial certification events completed

• —Treating low observable material maintenance on the F-22 as identical to standard aircraft surface maintenance — F-22 LO materials require specialized tools, procedures, and curing processes that differ fundamentally from conventional maintenance, and improvised repairs are expensive failures.

An apprentice F-22 maintainer who recognizes the rarity and importance of this platform — there are only 186 F-22s in the inventory — and who treats every maintenance action as directly impacting the nation's air superiority capability, not just another aircraft on the flight line.

You are a qualified F-22A maintainer sustaining America's most capable air superiority fighter at one of the small number of bases that operate this aircraft.

Perform scheduled and unscheduled maintenance on F-22A aircraft at your assigned F-22 unit — typically Langley AFB, Elmendorf AFB, Tyndall AFB, Hickam AFB, or Nellis AFB. Execute maintenance work orders, troubleshoot aircraft system faults, repair low observable surfaces, and contribute to aircraft generation for training and operational missions. Develop systems-level understanding of the F-22's unique capabilities and how maintenance actions affect mission capability. Build specialty certifications across F-22 sub-systems. Understand the implications of limited fleet size — every F-22 that is not mission capable represents a significant fraction of total national air superiority capacity.

• 01F-22A scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, LO surface inspection and repair, aircraft generation for training and operational missions, specialty certification progression, F119 engine interface maintenance, ALIS documentation

• —F-22 technical orders, ALIS user documentation, LO repair procedures, unit maintenance operations instructions

• —Maintenance actions completed correctly per technical order; ALIS documentation accurate; LO inspections and repairs properly executed; aircraft generation effective; certification progression on track

• —Performing maintenance actions that are technically correct but that create low observable signature issues that are not obvious in standard maintenance documentation — the F-22 maintainer who does not understand which maintenance activities affect stealth signature may sign off complete work that has actually degraded the aircraft's most critical capability.

A SrA who has developed a working understanding of which maintenance activities affect F-22 LO signature — and who proactively coordinates with LO specialists before performing work in LO-sensitive areas, rather than discovering the signature impact during the next LO assessment.

You are a senior F-22 maintainer developing toward team lead and senior specialist qualifications, building expertise on one of the most exclusive aircraft maintenance assignments in the Air Force.

Perform F-22 maintenance as a senior specialist and develop toward team lead qualifications. Train junior maintainers on F-22 systems, maintenance procedures, and ALIS documentation. Evaluate trainee performance. Lead maintenance teams on complex scheduled maintenance packages. Develop sub-system specialization that extends the unit's capability. Interface with the F-22 SPO field service representatives on complex technical issues. Manage the specialized tooling and equipment that F-22 maintenance requires. Understand the implications of parts availability challenges in a small fleet.

• 01Team lead and senior specialist qualification, junior maintainer training and evaluation, complex maintenance leadership, F-22 sub-system specialization, SPO field service coordination, specialized tooling management

• —F-22 technical orders, AFTTP for F-22 maintenance, AFI 36-2201, SPO technical guidance, F-22 fleet management publications

• —Team lead qualification maintained; junior maintainers trained to standard; complex maintenance completed correctly; sub-system specialization recognized; SPO coordination effective

• —Developing deep sub-system expertise without building the cross-system awareness that the F-22's integrated architecture requires — the F-22's avionics, propulsion, LO, and mission systems are more tightly integrated than legacy fighters, and system isolation during troubleshooting can miss root causes that span sub-system boundaries.

An SSgt F-22 maintainer who has contributed to the unit's maintenance knowledge base — documenting a recurring fault pattern, identifying a troubleshooting shortcut that saves hours without bypassing the technical order, or training an approach that junior maintainers consistently reference.

You are the F-22 maintenance section NCOIC, responsible for the training program, aircraft production quality, and maintenance capability of an F-22 section that operates the world's most capable air superiority fighter.

Serve as the F-22 maintenance section NCOIC. Own the training and certification program. Brief the production superintendent and maintenance officer on F-22 fleet status, mission capable rates, and complex maintenance issues. Interface with the F-22 SPO and field service representatives on technical and parts issues. Manage the specialized tooling and unique parts pipeline that the F-22's small fleet requires. Lead the section's response to significant discrepancies. Advise the maintenance group commander on F-22-specific readiness. Understand the fleet-wide implications of mission capable rate trends in a 186-aircraft inventory.

• 01Section NCOIC duties, F-22 certification program management, SPO interface, small-fleet parts management, significant discrepancy leadership, maintenance officer briefings, fleet-context readiness understanding

• —F-22 technical orders, AFI 21-101, F-22 SPO policy, unit maintenance operations instructions

• —Mission capable rate meeting ACC standards; certification program audit-ready; SPO coordination effective; parts pipeline managed proactively; maintenance officer briefings accurate

• —Managing F-22 maintenance without accounting for the fleet-level implications of aircraft availability decisions — a decision to defer a maintenance action on one F-22 is a decision that removes a measurable percentage of national air superiority capacity from service, and that context should inform maintenance prioritization in ways it might not on a large-fleet aircraft.

A TSgt F-22 NCOIC who briefs the maintenance officer not just on section mission capable rate but on what specific maintenance actions are planned to improve that rate and how long each will take — providing a production forecast rather than just a current status, giving leadership the ability to plan operations around the maintenance schedule.

You are the senior F-22 maintenance NCO at the group level, advising commanders on F-22 fleet readiness in a context where every aircraft matters significantly.

Serve as the maintenance group or MAJCOM F-22 superintendent. Advise commanders on F-22 fleet readiness, systemic maintenance challenges, and parts availability affecting mission capable rates across the F-22 fleet. Interface with the F-22 SPO at the institutional level. Manage complex maintainer personnel actions. Contribute to F-22 maintenance doctrine. Represent the 2A3X3 community at MAJCOM standardization events. As 1stSgt, own the welfare and discipline of the F-22 maintenance formation.

• 01Group/command F-22 oversight, F-22 SPO institutional interface, fleet-level readiness advisory, small-fleet maintenance doctrine, complex personnel management, senior enlisted advisory

• —F-22 SPO publications, AFI 21-101, MAJCOM maintenance directives, F-22 fleet readiness management publications

• —F-22 fleet meeting ACC readiness requirements; SPO relationship productive; systemic issues identified and escalated; doctrine contributions accurate; personnel actions appropriate

• —Allowing fleet readiness briefings to present F-22 mission capable rates without the context of which specific aircraft are in long-term maintenance and how long each will remain non-mission capable — the 186-aircraft context means every individual aircraft's maintenance status matters at the portfolio level.

An MSgt who maintains and briefs a fleet-level F-22 maintenance status that accounts for every aircraft by tail number — knowing which aircraft are in long-term maintenance, which are approaching major inspections, and which are driving the fleet-wide mission capable rate up or down.

You are the most senior F-22 maintenance enlisted leader, responsible for the career field and the Air Force's ability to sustain the world's premier air superiority fighter.

Serve as the ACC F-22 maintenance career field functional manager or senior enlisted maintenance advisor for air superiority systems. Shape training standards, certification requirements, and the pipeline producing F-22 maintainers. Advise four-star commanders on F-22 fleet readiness, the implications of the limited fleet size on national air superiority capacity, and the resource requirements for sustaining an aging fleet. Interface with the F-22 SPO at the executive level. Contribute to doctrine for fifth-generation maintenance in contested environments. Advise on the implications of F-22 fleet decisions — retirement, upgrades, potential foreign military sales — for the maintainer workforce.

• 01Career field functional management, F-22 SPO executive engagement, small-fleet sustainment advisory, contested environment maintenance doctrine, fleet decision advisory, four-star advisory, pipeline oversight

• —ACC career field publications, F-22 SPO publications, DoD air superiority assessment publications, AF force development documents

• —Career field producing sufficient qualified F-22 maintainers for fleet sustainment; fleet readiness accurately assessed; contested environment doctrine technically sound; four-star commanders understand fleet-level readiness implications of F-22 decisions

• —Allowing F-22 readiness briefings to four-star commanders to present fleet averages without the context that a small number of long-term maintenance aircraft can significantly distort the average — and without the forecast of how those aircraft will affect readiness over the coming months.

A CMSgt who briefs four-star commanders on F-22 readiness with a 90-day fleet forecast — projecting which aircraft will complete long-term maintenance, which will enter it, and what the mission capable rate trajectory looks like — enabling operational commanders to plan force employment around the maintenance schedule rather than being surprised by it.