ATLANTIC OCEAN – The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) completed Material Maintenance Management Assessment (3MA), March 19–21.
“Overall Abe did really well,” said Senior Chief Aviation Boatswain’s Mate Sean Roberts, air department 3M inspector from Commander, Naval Air Force Atlantic. “We saw a lot of really good maintenance men and women out there. I think if everyone keeps up the good work that the 3MI will go just as well.”
3MA inspectors observe Abraham Lincoln’s 3M program as a whole and the assessment is also training for Sailors to improve their overall knowledge of maintenance. It is designed to help prepare Abraham Lincoln Sailors for the 3M Inspection (3MI) this September.
“This assessment has put us in a really good place to enhance our maintenance skills,” said Senior Chief Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) Dennis Parker, Abraham Lincoln’s 3M coordinator, “not only for our 3M inspection in a few months, but also for maintaining our equipment and for the overall preservation of the ship as a whole.”
CNAL inspected many of the functions Sailors perform while doing their maintenance. They looked at everything from how Sailors performed their assigned maintenance, such as damage control firefighting equipment all the way to the chairs in medical, to the system that is used to track it, SKED 3.2.
3M has existed in the Navy for more than 26 years, and the importance of maintenance is paramount to the survivability of Abraham Lincoln.
“A lot of Sailors don’t realize the importance of the maintenance that they are doing,” said Lt. John Tatro, Abraham Lincoln’s 3M officer. “Think about a car. People typically don’t wait for their oil light to pop up before they get an oil change; they know that they need to get maintenance done regularly to preserve the life of their vehicles. The same exact thing goes for this ship. The maintenance that Sailors are performing aboard this ship is what keeps her operational throughout her expected lifetime.”
Tatro said Sailors should always be performing at the same level they did during this assessment. The assessment tested the crew’s ability to maintain the serviceability of the ship at all times, and it is the standard that the Navy requires you maintain.
“It’s like taking your drivers-ed test,” said Parker. “If you have been driving and practicing all of the time, then the actual test should just be business as usual. That is how we need to continue to treat these inspections.”
It takes Sailors at every rank and rate to perform at the top of their game to make assessments like these run smoothly, and it is an all-hands effort to make sure they take 3M seriously.
“It comes down to a strong work-ethic and ownership,” said Parker. “The triad uses that term a lot, and it’s because it is important. If everyone on the ship takes responsibility for their spaces and their assigned maintenance, then we will continue to move forward and progress as a command.”
While challenging and sometimes demanding, maintenance is something that is not going away. Senior Chief Hull Technician Mike Smith, a 3M inspector from CNAL, said it is best to em 72brace it and put care into what is done.
“There are two things that are going to happen every single day in the Navy,” said Smith. “Periodic maintenance checks and muster reports.”
Spot checks can be tedious but can also be beneficial, not only for the Sailor completing the spot check, but also for the leadership conducting it. Smith had some advice for senior leadership and for Abraham Lincoln to continue to do well in the future.
“When you are doing a spot check with one of your junior Sailors and they get lost or don’t know what to do that’s the perfect time for some mentorship,” said Smith. “Sit down with them, study that MRC, and show them that you care about what you are doing. That’s the money right there. It’s going to show them that they should care about their maintenance. There are not many Sailor-to-Sailor mentorship opportunities that pass on knowledge and work ethic like this.”
This is the only 3MA that Abraham Lincoln will have until its 3MI scheduled in September.
For more news from USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), visit www.navy.mil/local/cvn72/.
Source: MCN Shane Bryan USS Abraham Lincoln Public Affairs
https://www.militarynews.com/norfolk-navy-flagship/news/top_stories/lincoln-completes-ma/article_9b2ef11e-5744-5e1a-b9e6-07ae9ec627f8.html
