OCR Text |
Show Country BFLgfcLjr 26, "2003 Trusting your people Confidence in troops leads to successful mission By LL Col. Walt Tatum 729 Air Control Squadron commander would be controlling the initial airstrikes on Baghdad on 19 April. As the war drew closer, our base ballooned to more than 13,000 troops, with four services well represented. Along with additional troops, each day also brought never-endin- g challenges and concerns. How do we operate with an Army Patriot Brigade that was going to be located right next to our site? How do we integrate with British Rapier missile system that would provide another air base defense capability? How do we integrate with Army and Navy assets we've never worked with? How do we coordinate with unmanned aerial vehicles? The answer to all these questions was the same my troops. They made it all work. I made the decision on what we would support (and believe me, we were asked to support all of it) and the troops found a way to make it happen. The week before the war I told them this was like nothing I had ever seen. I was in awe of the abilities they all possessed to get the job done. Their pride, professionalism, and dedication were never more evident. We were about to engage in combat and we all knew we were "Trust your people." How many times hav e you heard this since you've been in the military? I first heard it as friendly advice from military friends as I prepared to attend Officer Training School, and I've heard it ever since. But never was it more evident than during the six months we were deployed to support Operation Southern Watch and Operation Iraqi Freedom. As we prepared for our scheduled y rotation to Southwest Asia at this time last year, w e had a pretty good idea a war would kick off on our watch and that our deployment would be anything but routine. When we arrived at our deployed location, there were about 1,200 troops, mostly Air Force, already in place. The Air Control Squadron we were replacing quickly spun us up on our duties and in only a couple of days we took over as the 386th Expeditionary Air Control Squadron, part of the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing. Little did we know how many different services and countries we'd be tasked to integrate with in the coming months or that eventually we 90-da- Lt. Col. r t . Bishop ' l- U ' - Where is your hometown? 1. V i ' r-- Sari Diego, Calif. 2. Do you have any family here? I have my wife, Maria, and daughter, Sophia, here. 3. How do you spend your off duty f v v TV Lt. Col. Walt Tatum ready. assured them this is what we were trained for and that we would be successful. The only question left now was whether or not our gas masks and the new chemical warfare suits would really work. Throughout the combat phase of OIF, our squadron stepped up and got it done. Shortly after OIF started we heard the first of about three I We do a lot of things together as a family. We love to travel, hunt for antiques and are looking forward to' many trips around the local area. On an individual basis, I enjoy studying how companies and corporations operate. It helps me with investing and observing how corporations deal with similar business concerns that we have in the Air Force. 4. What are your personal goals as the new 4th FS commander? The number one priority is to have fun! The Fuujins have great personnel, a great mission and we live in a wonderful community. Every person in the squadron is sharp, I know they are going to do the mission right the first time. I will take care of our personnel and their families they are the most important part of the 4FS. 5. What challenges do you see as the new 4th FS commander? - Provided 247 radar, radio and data link operations to the Kuwait theater of operations ed air picture for the Combined Air Operation Center - Provided air con- trol to an astound- ing 25,000 sorties and 42,000 air refu- elings - Directly support- ed 35 response during OSW provided surveillance, identification, and con- trol of radar and mis-optio- ns sile networks for sector defense - Completely closed down the Air Control Squadron in theater - Provided central hub for over 50 units in the Tactical Link-- J - Integrated Army, Marine, Navy, and Air Force C2 assets in concert with units from the British and Kuwaiti militaries formed an impenetrable web creat- - after 8 years of successful opera-Dat- a tion 729th ACS wins ACC ME A award With a six-mon- th mission in Iraq coupled with the duties and support from those at home, the "Angry Warriors" are the top maintenance squadron in ACQ Airman 1st Class Madelyn Waychoff 388th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Preparation and synchronized execution. At the change of command, I promised my commanders that the Fuujins will always be ready to go anywhere, anytime and return home with no losses. An easily obtainable goal as long as you prepare. 6. What advice would you give to those pursuing an AF career? Don't look at it as a career. It is really an opportunity to help maintain the freedoms of the best country in the world. I am an immigrant and during my childhood, my father always talked about how our lives were so much better in the United States because of the military volunteers who continually defend our way of life. So if you want to be part of the best service, in the best country... sign up and stay in ! Once you're in, the AF offers many opportunities for improvement with increased education, a variety of job opportunities and leadership roles. six-mon- th - By time? 729th ACS major accomplishments during OIF deployment 15-pl- - Meet the new 4th FS commander Grant jommentary weeks worth of "Alarm Red -MOPP 4, bunkers now !" There is no substitute for the real thing when it comes to a sense of urgency. Fortunately, we never had to find out if our chemical suits and masks would protect us from chemical or biological theagents, but during the ater ballistic missile attacks aimed at us, there was always the concern that this might be the one. During some of these attacks, operators and maintainers alike put their own safety aside by staying on duty in our unprotected operations modules to continuously provide control to coalition aircraft, including critical target updates and safety of flight information, and deploying personnel to fire up the generators that powered our electronic protection equipment. Our vision statement is "arrive with the right training, tools and attitude to get the job done right the first time Warrior standard." We had all of that, and then some. I felt like I could have taken that team with me anywhere, and met any challenge. The opportunity to command and serve with the "Angry Warriors" in wartime is an experience I will always treasure. Wendoyer, Nev., did a work center deployment to Little Mountain outside the Great Salt Lake and a deployment to the north Utah Test and Training Range. "We kept our equipment operational and we did a lot of training," said Captain Karver. "We kept our mission going." The ACC award recognizes the teamwork and hard work of those who deployed and those who kept the mission going at home. "A lot of times the work maintainers do goes unseen; it's nice to see everyone recognized," said Captain Karver. "This award is the best thing to happen all year," Major Stephens said. "What we did was a team thing, and that's why we won. Our folks deserved it because they've made a lot of progress and have had a huge impact both here and over there. I couldn't be prouder of these guys. "They've made a lot of sacrifices being away from their homes for so long, but they were still motivated to get the mission done. This award recognizes them for that outstanding work." flying missions out there." The 729th's impact was clear in Southwest Asia. The people in the squadron could see the results of their efforts every day. "I'm really pleased; this recognizes our hard work over the last year," said Chief Master Sgt. Chris Hanson, 729th ACS maintenance superintendent. "This is great for morale, we worked really hard and did things right." While most of the squadron was deployed earlier this year, there were those that stayed behind to keep up the mission here at home. "We kept the rest of the squadron ready to go," said Capt. Larry Karver, 729th ACS mission systems flight commander. "We made sure everyone's files were updated and they had all the training they needed before they left." Once the squadron was deployed, the people here supported those in Southwest Asia, but those here also had their own mission to do. The squadron twice deployed to The 729th Air Control Squadron "Angry Warriors" were honored for their efforts in Southwest Asia and here at home over the last year by winning the 2003 Air Combat Command Maintenance Effectiveness Award for communications-electronic- s category. "We won because we have the best people, and you just can't beat the mission impact we had during Operation Southern Watch and Operation Enduring Freedom," said Maj. Cindy .ass. t uv 5, Stephens, 729th ACS maintenance director. , ' ' rv..vft-r-v'tv'.."But the root cause was the airmen v : 1 ; wvi V and officers) who "--t m . , r were out there maintaining our sysbecause did an tems, they outstanding job over there," she added. The 729th went to Southwest Asia in November 2002 for a normal three-monrotation, but ended up being 6 12 months. While they were there, they finished Operation Southern Watch, and went straight into Operation Iraqi Freedom. "We were as close to the mission as you can get," said Major Stephens. File photo "The air battle managers in our unit "Angry Warriors" from the 729th Air Control Squadron show their pride by lining up for a group were working directly with the aircraft, photo. The 729th recently won the Air Combat Command 2003 Maintenance Effectiveness Award. ?y. ed - '-- r 'v W v Si" iy: - V Ti'-sr'-- th Fighter Country Published for People Like... hi Airman 1st Class Raymond Lynch Editorial Staff Unit: 4th Aircraft Maintenance Unit Colonel Charlie Lyon 2nd Lt. Vernon Thompson Job: Weapons Airman 1 Class Madelyn Waychoff Commander Deputy chief. Public Affairs Editor Time in Service: Six months Most recent accomplishment: Arrived here, I've been here eight days s j Goals: To get senior airman if I in mffiiiiilmi-tn- t irr nm iMnrn in imut A- e could change one thing at Hill AFB what would it be: wouldn't change anything ti below-the-zon- The FiRhter Country is a supplement to the Hilltop rimes, published by MorMcdia. Inc., a private firm in no way connected with the U.S. Air Force, under exclusive written contract with the Ogden Air Logistics Center Public Affairs Office, This commercial enterprise Air Force newspaper is an authorized publication for members of the U.S. military services. Contents of Fighter Country are not necessarily (he official views of, or endorsed by the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense or the Department of the Air Force. Unless otherwise indicated, all photos are U.S. Air Force photos. Advertisements contained herein do not constitute endorsement by the Department of Defense, the U.S. Air Force of Hill AFB. Everything advertised is available without regard to race, color, religion, sex. or other nonmerit factor of the purchaser, user or patron. The Fighter Country is edited, prepared and provided by the 388th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office 5887 D Ave 7. Suite 1 3, Hill AFB UT, 84056-50- I to the editor at fighter country Story submissions for the Fighter Country can be brought by the office, hill af mil or faxed to Deadline for submissions to Fighter Country is no later than Monday, noon, (wo weeks prior to publication. For more information, call the public affairs office at |