AFCPCO Sponsors 39th Annual Air Force Corrosion Conference

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. David Rail and Mindy Cooper
  • AFRL Materials and Manufacturing Directorate
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  The Air Force Corrosion Prevention and Control Office held its 39th annual Air Force Corrosion Conference on May 13-15 at the Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry, Georgia. The 3-day event regularly attracts over 500 government, industry, and academia players involved in all aspects of corrosion prevention and control on aircraft, aerospace systems, and support equipment. 

This year, there were over 30 briefings presented on topics ranging from current corrosion programs and best practices to emerging technologies in corrosion prevention and mitigation. Presenting organizations included the Air Force Research Laboratory, the United States Army, United States Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), and NASA. The keynote address was given by Mr. Daniel J. Dunmire, Special Assistant for Corrosion Policy and Oversight for the Department of Defense. 

On the maintenance front, Major Command breakout meetings were held for field-level technicians and MAJCOM corrosion managers to address maintenance issues and share knowledge and expertise. The conference also included a vendor fair with over 60 companies displaying their corrosion-related tools and materials, all of which where approved for Air Force use and included in technical orders. 

This year's conference drew 470 participants, among which 145 were military, 71 were civil service, 75 were contractors, and 154 were exhibitors. There were 17 participants from foreign countries, including Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Colombia, Germany, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, and Singapore.

"Communication is one of the biggest hurdles in the corrosion prevention business, as it is in most areas. This conference helps close the gap on communication problems and puts us face-to-face with our customers," said Major Robert Reed, departing chief of the Air Force Corrosion Prevention and Control Office and now operations officer for the 568th Aircraft Sustainment Squadron.

The mission of the AFCPCO is to "ensure the Air Force has an effective program to prevent, detect, and control corrosion and minimize the impact of corrosion on Air Force combat capability." As such, AFCPCO is actively involved across the entire lifecycle for aircraft, support equipment, and ground communications-electronic equipment. Major functions of the AFCPCO include engineering authority over, and maintenance of, six general series Technical Orders; transitioning corrosion technologies to users; conducting corrosion surveys of major commands and weapon systems; participating in weapon system Corrosion Prevention Advisory Boards, and hosting the annual USAF Corrosion Conference.

The 40th annual Air Force Corrosion Conference will be held on March 24-26, 2009 at the same location and will be free to attend. For further information, please visit AFCPCO's conference website at www.afcpo.com or contact 2nd Lt. David Rail at afcorr@robins.af.mil  or at (478) 926-3284.