CES builds, maintains Luke's 'house'

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Pedro Mota
  • 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  The most high-tech gadget will malfunction or break down every now and then, but when it does break a specialized team works together in order to maintain the functional capacity of the item.

The men and women of the 56th Civil Engineer Squadron ensure the base is up and running at all times to its maximum potential.

"Basically, CES maintains the entire base along with every facility and piece of equipment that is attached to it," said Senior Master Sgt. Christopher Lebourveau, 56th CES Operations Flight superintendent. "We also oversee projects to make sure they are on schedule and under budget."

The 56th CES has six flights within the squadron that keep the base operational and maintained.

Within these flights, the skills vary and play an important role in executing the Luke mission.

Customer service responds to the needs of establishments by issuing work orders to the correct flights to fix the problem, prioritized by importance and budget demands.

But even with budget demands underway, the engineering flights oversee military construction contracts that involve the F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter, such as the hangars and new pilot training facility currently under construction.

Not every flight needs a work order to operate. The fire services section of the 56th CES may be called into action at any time regardless of if they have a work order or not. Another flight that must be prepared around the clock is the explosive ordnance disposal team. They have an automatic aid agreement with the city of Glendale and surrounding fire services for any need of assistance with each other.

"With the automatic aid agreement we're able to work with any of the surrounding fire departments as well as receive aid if necessary," said Anthony Rabonza, 56th CES deputy fire chief. "We have a great relationship with the Glendale police and fire departments."

When bases focus on the community, it has a big effect. Continental U.S. bases typically rely on civilian contractors to gain access to a water treatment facility, but the men and women with the 56th CES help run a facility that is unique because it's specifically designed for Luke to operate with the aid of community partners.

"We have a unique environment that runs efficiently and is economically friendly," Lebourveau said. "Because of the good relationship we have with the state of Arizona, we are able to supply the base's needs."