SAVANNAH, Ga., May 16, 2013 — Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. today announced enhancements to its Field and Airborne Support Teams (FAST), the company’s program that helps Gulfstream aircraft operators in aircraft-on-ground (AOG) situations by dispatching technicians and maintenance engineers by airplane, train or automobile.
The company recently upgraded its FAST aircraft, replacing two Gulfstream G100s with two G150s. The aircraft are utilized to transport technicians and flight-essential parts across the U.S., Canada, Central America and the Caribbean. Gulfstream maintains a G100 as a backup for the airborne maintenance service.
The wide-cabin, high-speed G150 has a range of 3,000 nautical miles (5,556 km) — Savannah to Seattle — at Mach 0.75, and has 27 percent more cabin space than the mid-size G100. This enables the transport of many replacement parts for Gulfstream’s new flagship aircraft, the ultra large-cabin G650.
“We strive to continuously enhance the support we offer operators and their aircraft,” said Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream Product Support. “The addition of the G150s to Gulfstream FAST allows us to reach operators faster and with fewer stops. With a G150, we can routinely fly nonstop to the West Coast from Savannah. The G150 also offers the best availability rate in the Gulfstream fleet at nearly 92 percent.”
Other enhancements to the Gulfstream FAST program include adding a third shift of two pilots and naming a new chief pilot, Tenille Cromwell. Cromwell has flown more than 550 missions as a team member since June 2008 and is type-rated on the G100, G150 and G200. She was formerly FAST’s assistant chief pilot and training captain. Before joining Gulfstream in June 2008, she spent more than eight years in the U.S. Navy flying T-1A Jayhawks as a flight commander and E-6B Mercurys as a standardization/evaluation pilot.
Cromwell earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration from the University of Southern California and Georgia Southern University, respectively.
Gulfstream has 12 U.S.-based pilots, 12 U.S.-based technicians and six Europe-based maintenance engineers dedicated to the FAST program. Gulfstream FAST, which has made more than 3,400 mission flights and recently surpassed 10,000 flight hours, also utilizes more than 20 vehicles throughout the U.S. and Europe, including a pair of specially outfitted rapid response trucks. The first truck operates out of the San Francisco Bay Area, while the second will be positioned in the Houston area.
Behind-the-scenes logistical support for FAST involves several Gulfstream departments, including Technical Operations, Flight Operations, Spare Part Sales and Field Service. FAST aircraft are easily identified by their livery, which includes logos of many Gulfstream suppliers.
