LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas—Every day, Laughlin maintainers work long hours with Team XL aircraft and pilots. For some, like Ralph Merscham, 47th Maintenance Directorate T-6 aircraft attendant, it becomes a way of life.
“I come to work every day and do the best that I can do and then go home,” Merscham said. “It’s important that we have the [aircraft] ready every morning for the pilots to fly.”
One of Merscham’s responsibilities is to walk the flightline looking for trash on the ground and in the airplanes. If trash were to be sucked into the engine, it could burn out the engine possibly result in damage to the equipment or even put the lives of the pilots at risk.
“I love it out there,” Merscham said. “I would hate to be [in the office] on a computer or doing something else.”
For Merscham, doing the job he loves results in taking pride in a job well done.