 When it comes to air superiority the F-15 Eagle has been a major factor in the Air Force's ability to stay above the foe for 50 years and to keep its edge maintenance is a must. So it's very important what we do and take pride in what we do and to produce a quality aircraft. It's here inside the Eagles Nest at Robbins Air Force Base, Georgia where maintainers at the Warner Robbins Air Logistics Complex and Air Force Lifecycle Management Center personnel play a critical role in making sure America's fighter jets stay at maximum performance. The Eagles fly. That's what we call it. It's lovely. You know you see an eagle fly, the soar, that's it. To me I'm doing my part. I didn't serve in military but right now I'm doing my part to help the nation and my war fighters. You know keeping them safe making sure they have the equipment they need to do their job. According to installation historian Bill Head the first F-15 came to Robbins in November 1974 and now half a century later Robbins services all of the Air Force's global fleet of F-15s. Well we take it very serious because we need to make sure that the pilots are safe that we give a good aircraft back to the warfighter in order for them to do their job correctly. We need to do ours. And then flight test pilots like Lieutenant Colonel Matt Griffin step in. The aircrew that we attract here to our squadron because of the mission that we do our experienced aircrew members. I myself was on active duty for 12 years prior F-15E operationally serving in Afghanistan and also the Horn of Africa. It's vital to understand operationally how these aircraft are used because as experienced aircrew members we know that it could be a 25 year old first lieutenant flying these these airplanes into combat and we make sure we give those guys the best product we have because we've been there we know the conditions and the you know the dangerous environments those guys will be flying in. In the testing process Lieutenant Colonel Scott Smith says pilots push the F-15 to supersonic speed. Well there's there's a specific component that we're testing and it's got to be tested basically between Mach 1.3 and 1.5. That marvel of aviation technology happened October 14th 1947. This year marks 75 years since US Air Force Captain Charles Chuck Yeager became the world's first pilot to fly faster than the speed of sound. And so we have a physical limiter that limits rudder travel when we're going that fast and we have to be able to go that fast to test that that's effectively working. Additionally you're also checking the performance of the engines to make sure that they're performing correctly and also you're just checking out the basic capabilities of the airplane so you want to make sure that it operates properly throughout the entire flight envelope. In the cockpit there is there is not really any indication other than the instruments that that you have broken the sound there. It's a lot of joy even though it booms everybody makes noise but it's a wonderful sound for us to hear that. If they're doing their job we're gonna be safe here in the United States and everywhere else. Our legacy of strength providing the foundation of our future to always fly fight and win by providing air power anytime anywhere. For the 78th Air Base Wing Public Affairs Office I'm Keisha Foster Johnson.