Aircraft Electrical/Instrument/Flight Control Systems Technician, IMA

0600: Section muster — SSgt reviews overnight TAT board, assigns WOs from the incoming queue to techs by qualification level. 0630: Pull assigned WO from NALCOMIS queue, locate removed component on the incoming shelf, log receipt entry and begin cosmetic inspection per IETM incoming procedure. 0800: Set up ATE test stand per IETM setup procedure; verify calibration status on all test instruments before connecting component. 1000: Run functional test sequence under Sgt supervision; log each test result step-by-step in the WO; flag any no-go indications for CDI review. 1300: Parts run to supply to pick up repair parts for a separate WO; log receipt in NALCOMIS and stage for afternoon bench work. 1500: Assist senior tech with repair procedure on a flight control actuator; observe CDI inspection of completed work. 1630: Update WO log entries, clean and secure test equipment per end-of-day checklist, brief oncoming shift on status of open WOs.

Monday morning is the production meeting — the maintenance officer and QA review the TAT board, oldest WOs first, and the shop makes commitments on expected return dates that the flight schedule depends on. Friday afternoon is the calibration audit and the weekly NALCOMIS WO closure review where any open entries from the week get resolved or escalated. The rhythm in between is bench work sequenced by TAT priority.

IETM navigation under COMNAVAIRFORINST 4790.2 is the first real skill — finding the correct procedure, the correct revision, and the correct step callouts under time pressure without drifting to shortcut memory. Calibration cycle awareness matters early: every test instrument on your bench has a cal due date and using out-of-cal equipment to make a maintenance determination is a serious NAMP violation that voids the signed-off work order.

COMNAVAIRFORINST 4790.2 (NAMP) is the governing instruction for everything — Chapter 10 covers IMA functions, work center responsibilities, and the mechanics of the maintenance cycle. Your platform-specific maintenance instruction manuals (MIMs) and the interactive electronic technical manuals (IETMs) accessed through NATEC are the day-to-day reference.

Every bench action requires a corresponding NALCOMIS work order entry before the action occurs, not after — that sequence is an auditable NAMP requirement and QA checks it on spot inspections. Calibration status of every piece of test equipment used must be verified before any test is run and documented in the work order; a cal-expired instrument on a completed WO is an automatic MRC discrepancy and a potential safety-of-flight write-up.

Assuming the ATE fault code is the complete picture and not performing the full isolate-and-verify sequence from the IETM is the mistake that sends a misdiagnosed component back to the flight line — on a flight control actuator, that is an aircraft mishap waiting to happen. Improper handling of gyroscopic instruments — spinning them up before they're properly secured, or subjecting them to mechanical shock during bench setup — causes bearing damage that won't show up on the functional test but will cause in-flight failure.

The decision at this tier is whether to invest in the job or mark time until EAS — and the shop will tell the difference within weeks. The junior tech who earns their first CDI task qualifications ahead of the standard timeline is the one the SSgt recommends for early Cpl promotion. The one who doesn't is fine, but they spend three years as the parts runner.

A fixed-wing IMA (F/A-18, F-35B, KC-130) has a larger component throughput volume and more structured ATE bench infrastructure than a rotary-wing shop (CH-53, MV-22) — the pace of WO flow is higher and the component types more diverse. Rotary-wing IMA shops, particularly CH-53 shops, deal with heavier hydraulic test stand work and more complex flight control actuator architectures than fixed-wing equivalents.

The junior tech who stands out is the one who asks the right question before starting, not after hitting a roadblock. A good E3 has every WO entry squared away before shift end, can verbally walk the SSgt through why they chose each test step, and has never used out-of-cal equipment without flagging it first.

Cpl requires completed CDI task qualifications in your assigned bench areas and the demonstrated ability to run a WO from receipt to close without supervision — the Sgt who assigns you your first unsupervised bench sequence is watching for both technical accuracy and documentation discipline simultaneously.