CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Members of the 437th and 315th Airlift Wings will be participating in a week- long exercise June 20-27 in preparation for the upcoming operational readiness inspection in August.
During the June exercise, Airmen will continue practicing their ability to survive and operate skills and how they will put their job knowledge to use in a wartime environment. Air Mobility Command inspectors will be looking at how they deploy, fight and redeploy back to their home base during the ORI.
"This exercise will help finalize our preparation for the ORI in August," said David Hunt, 437 AW readiness and inspection chief. "This will help us to adjust and correct discrepancies we found during the May flyaway."
The week will kick off with an initial response exercise, when Airmen and cargo will be processed to get ready for a mock deployment. Later in the week, there will be two table-top exercises where units will be practicing command, control and communication procedures and how the deployed unit control centers, installation control center and the emergency operation center respond to incidents and communicate with each other.
There will also be a ramp patriot mission ceremony held on the flightline to have Airmen practice how to receive human remains.
"Typically the chaplain, aerial port and force support Airmen must deal with this issue," Mr. Hunt said. "This type of mission has a high emphasis by the Inspector General, and we can expect they will test our capabilities in this area."
The week will conclude with a mock redeployment and briefing discussing what the base did right and what needs to be practiced more for the ORI in August.
Though there will be some table-top exercises, most Airmen will continue to hone their ATSO skills during the week for the upcoming ORI.
"The ATSO piece of the ORI is a large portion of our grade and, as such, we must be prepared for any and all scenarios the IG will give us," Mr. Hunt said.
To help in getting Airmen ready for the ATSO training at the unit level, there will be a "Train the Trainer" class to prepare individuals from each unit to go back and provide training and evaluation in the ATSO skills to Airmen in their work centers according to Mr. Hunt.
While there is a steady mission at Charleston AFB, the commander of the 437th Airlift Wing wants Team Charleston members to keep in mind what the ORI means for the base.
"The upcoming ORI in August is our No.1 priority," said Col. John "Red" Millander, 437th Airlift Wing commander. "We need every Team Charleston member to be focused on their mission, to prove to the Inspector General why we are the premier airlift wing in the Air Force. Every Airman is going to have to work hard, but just as importantly, work right. Know the Air Force instruction or technical order that governs your work place and follow it ... don't cut corners. If there's a smarter way to work, speak up and take action.
"As we move through the next two exercises and toward the ORI, my challenge to every player is to set the bar high, not just for themselves, but for their wingmen, too. If you see a problem, now is the time to fix it so we're ready when the red flag goes up," Colonel Millander said.