NEIT’s Chris Platzer instructs RI’s Air Guard personnel on how to use a vehicle diagnostic scan tool
After a national search to find a qualified technical college or university to conduct specialized technical training for its Air Guard division, the National Guard selected NEIT to train personnel to troubleshoot and repair electrical fuel ignition systems for rapid response vehicles. It was the first such electrical training provided to the Air Guard.
Air Guard participants from seven Guard regions flew from as far as Alaska, Hawaii, and California for the weeklong training, which was held on campus from July 25 – 29, 2016.
The Director of Transportation Technology; Paul Harden worked with the faculty to create a condensed, tailored curriculum that combined theory with hands-on technical training. Each day, guard members took classes between 8:00 – 12:00 pm and then worked on technical exercises in labs between 1 – 5:00 pm. Four NEIT faculty members conducted various segments of the curriculum.
Participants worked on a military rapid response firetruck and a pick-up, although the curriculum and training were not vehicle specific. Instead, the training skills were designed to be transferable, so that Guard personnel could maintain, troubleshoot, and repair the more than 100 different vehicles it uses. Guard members learned to use such equipment as scan tools, to help identify internal engine and electrical problems in any vehicle.
“I was pleased the NEIT was given the opportunity to provide this specialized training to Guard units from around the country,” said Paul Harden.
This was not the first time NEIT was selected to provide specialized automotive training for the U.S. Military. In 2010, NEIT created a specialized program for the RI Army National Guard for the maintenance and repair of military Hummers. The National Guard plans to increase its partnerships with technical schools to provide additional on-site and off-site training for its personnel.
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