JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. –
The U.S. Air Force exists to serve and protect the American people in more ways than one. When the Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshal Airport Ground Maintenance Pavement Bay Team reached out to the 316th Civil Engineer Squadron at Joint Base Andrews to request training for rapid runway repair, the 316 CES did not hesitate to say yes. They knew they would be able to both share their knowledge and gain valuable insight from experienced professionals in the local community.
The Air Force’s mission is to “fly, fight and win... airpower anytime, anywhere.” To fulfill that mission, Airmen need training and professional development.
“We are continuously seeking process improvement,” said U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Alexander Manco, the 316 CES operations flight superintendent.
This process improvement comes from both constant training for Airmen and, when necessary, upgrading equipment. The joint training with BWI was an opportunity to develop both those areas.
“Part of the purpose of this visit was to see the equipment they had and what we could procure to allow us to meet emerging requirements,” said Manco.
The 316 CES, 316th Logistics and Readiness Squadron and the 89th Operations Support Squadron travelled to BWI and jumped into a varied discussion on snow prep, snow removal and rapid runway repairs.
“We shared our [knowledge on] pavement repairs, which includes anything involving concrete or asphalt that we do on the airfield to expedite getting the runway back up,” said U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Philip Layton, 316 CES section chief of pavements and equipment shop. “We shared information about our equipment and discussed snow removal operations. We saw how they do things, what their training and operations are like, and got a first-hand look at their equipment.”
After the initial discussions, BWI led a tour of their snow removal equipment. Layton described the tour as enlightening.
“It’s definitely eye-opening to see what kind of technological advancements there are and what’s out there to actually expedite the process,” said Layton. “They do their training in a similar way to ours. They do the snow removal processes the same as ours. The biggest difference between us is their capacity to store more chemicals and equipment.”
During Maryland’s 2026 blizzard, Joint Base Andrew’s airfield remained the only fully functional and available runway in the National Capital Region due to the hard work of the 316 CES Airmen. No matter the conditions, the no-fail mission at Andrews continues.
The 316 CES plans to continue this newfound partnership with BWI to learn from industry leaders and give back to the community.