What goes up must come down. That saying is true in regards to physics; however, that is not what you want to hear in a conversation about helicopters.

To prevent their helicopters from going down while in flight, maintenance crew members, known as maintainers, assigned to the "Spartans" of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 70 are working around the clock during phase maintenance to keep their "birds" in the air.

Squadrons like HSM-70 have the mission of providing anti-surface warfare and anti-submarine warfare for the fleet.

HSM-70 Sailors are stationed at Naval Air Station Jacksonville but the Spartans of Detachment 3 are embarked aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Truxtun (DDG 103) for a regularly scheduled deployment.

The Spartan maintainers are aviation structural mechanics who work on structural integrity and hydraulics; aviation electricians and aviation electronic technicians who work on the navigation, communication and electronic systems; aviation machinists who work on the engines and transmissions; an aviation maintenance administrationman who works on keeping track of flight hours and maintenance log books; and a storekeeper who orders helicopter parts.

Along with the crew of HSM-70 Det. 3 are two MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopters and their pilots. Keeping both helicopters mission capable is critical to Truxtun's mission during deployment. Det. 3's maintenance personnel have played a major role in accomplishing the detachment's deployment mission.

Phase maintenance is performed on the helicopters every 200 hours that the helicopter flies. It usually takes between four and five days to complete the maintenance.

"We have to take the aircraft apart in timed intervals and make sure all the parts are good," said Aviation Machinist's Mate 2nd Class Mackenzie Lane, an HSM-70 Sailor from Middletown, Virginia. "If any of the parts are worn or frayed we must replace it to maintain the integrity of the aircraft and ensure the safety of the pilots and crew while they're in the air."

There are four phases of maintenance; phase A, B, C and D. Det. 3 is currently conducting D-phase maintenance, the longest and most difficult of the four phases.

Maintainers are opening all the panels, checking all the fluids, looking at all of the wiring harnesses, looking for any foreign object debris (FOD), gouges in the tires, discrepancies with the rotors and performing a top-to-bottom inspection.

"If there are bad parts on the aircraft they can cause other parts to go bad and destroy the aircraft," said Lane. "Checking for bad parts and replacing as needed makes the aircraft life last longer."

"On a bigger ship such as an aircraft carrier there will be a maintenance shop with a crew of 10 or more Sailors to complete phase maintenance," said Lane. "We are doing more with less on the smaller ships because we have to complete the same amount of maintenance but there are only four of us to do so."

Just as ships belong at sea, helicopters belong in the air and the Spartans of Det. 3 continue to make sure their helicopters are flying as long as Truxtun is at sea.

Truxtun, homeported in Norfolk, is part of the George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group.

GHWBCSG is comprised of the staff of CSG-2; aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77); the nine squadrons and staff of Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 8; Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 22 staff; guided-missile destroyers USS Laboon (DDG 58) and USS Truxtun (DDG 103); and guided-missile cruisers USS Philippine Sea (CG 58) and USS Hue City (CG 66).

Truxtun is deployed in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations conducting naval operations in support of U.S. national security interests in Europe and Africa.

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For more news from USS Truxtun (DDG 103), visit www.navy.mil/.