Amphibious Assault Vehicle Platoon works hard to maintain smooth operations

Maintaining and operating 15 26-ton amphibious assault vehicles is no easy task, but the Marines of Amphibious Assault Vehicle Platoon, India Co., Battalion Landing Team 3/5, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, work hard to accomplish that mission everyday.In order to bring the Marines of India BLT 3/5, 15th MEU to shore, the company's AAV Platoon puts in countless hours toward achieving readiness with their AAVs.

"For every hour of operation on an AAV, we perform three hours of maintenance," said Cpl. Evan L. Watson, crew chief, AAV Platoon, India BLT 3/5, 15th MEU."After five days in Timor-Leste, we have a lot of work to do," added the 27-year-old native of West Hills, Calif.The platoon's daily routine typically consists of starting at 7:30 a.m., and identifying any discrepancies with each AAV. Each vehicle typically has one crew chief and two crewmen to conduct the primary echelons of maintenance.

If there are no discrepancies, each AAV has a 27-page preventative maintenance checks and services book that requires the crewmen to inspect every bolt, wire, cable and hose to ensure the AAV operates properly. The completion of the book typically takes each crew a month to complete on average."There is a lot of inspecting done, as well as lubricating and busting rust," added the 21-year-old native of Bloomington, Minn.