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Show AIR FORCE NEWS Live fire provides real training Photo by Tech. Sgt. Steve Horton A firefighter with the 332nd Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron keeps a watchful eye on a structural fire at Balad AB, Iraq, Feb. 16. The fire was set as part of a live-fire training exercise for the fire department. have the chance to undergo realistic live fire training. BALAD AB, Iraq (AFPN) —As black "Most training facilities consist of consmoke towered skyward and flames shot from a building engulfed in fire, a crowd of onlookers gathered to watch the base fire department save the day and the building. What they found instead was the 332nd Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron's fire and emergency services flight deployed strategically around the building and watching it burn. The building, along with two others nearby, were used for training Feb. 16 by the firefighters. "The live fire training served two purposes," said Master Sgt. David Lawrence, fire and emergency services assistant chief of B-shift. "First, there were three structures that required deFour fire trucks and 24 firefighters are on hand molition, and second, firefighters rarely Feb. 16. BY TECH SGT. STEVE HORTON 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs crete buildings with liquid propane gas fires," he said. "These fires produce the visual effect, but the heat and smoke conditions are totally different. These fires were designed to heighten firefighter awareness and increase confidence operating in a fire and smoke filled environment." The fire department took several steps in preparation for the live-fire training. The firefighters took turns cutting holes in the walls with forcible entry tools, and piles of Class A combustibles were placed in each room to aid ignition. Class A combustibles are ordinary combustible items such as wood, paper, and trash. An extensive pre-brief was conducted in accordance with National Fire Protection Association safety standards, handline crews took their places and the first fire was lit using flares. No accelerants such as gasoline or diesel were used to light the fire, Sergeant Lawrence said. "Initially the plan was to light one room at a time and have the firefighters knock the fire down from the doorway," Sergeant Lawrence said. "The fire spread rapidly throughout the structure, however, and rather than take a chance of endangering our firefighters, we opted to back out and let the structure burn. "All fires differ," he said. "Each is unpredictable in nature and these fires demonstrated this. The first two structures were constructed of plywood and 2x4s and burned quicker and hotter than any structural fires I've experienced in my 20-year career." The last building was a plywood structure surrounded by two metal trailers. The plywood portion burned quickly along with the contents inside the metal trailers, Sergeant Lawrence said. The entire operation lasted eight hours and involved 24 firefighters, including two from the Army. At the end of the day, the only things standing were satisfied firefighters and two burned-out metal shells. Photo by Tech. Sgt. Steve Horton for a live-fire training exercise at Balad AB, Iraq, Hilltop Times March 9, 2006 More personnel actions now available online BY SENIOR AIRMAN J.G. BUZANOWSKI Air Force Print News WASHINGTON (AFPN) — Like MyPay and LeaveWeb before, the Air Force is bringing even more military personnel flight actions online. The process, called personnel services delivery transformation, takes effect March 31, and will encompass even more options than those of the Virtual MPF site already on the Internet. "We're making it easier and more efficient for people to conduct their personnel business without having to worry about scheduling appointments or waiting in lines at their local MPF," said Tim Beyland, the Air Force manpower and personnel director of plans and integration. "People already do their banking online and pay their bills online, we're just taking the next step by conducting Air Force business online," he said. The transformation is a four-phase program, beginning this month and continuing through 2011. The first phase begins with the active-duty force and is further broken up into seven segments called spirals. Spiral 1, which goes into effect at the end of March, will move several personnel transactions Airmen usually visit their MPF for to the Web and contact center at the Air Force Personnel Center. Additional spirals will make processes available to the remaining total force, Mr. Beyland said. Among the initial actions transferred online are forms for evaluation appeals, retirements, retraining, and duty history corrections. To access the new online MPF actions, Airmen just need to log into the Air Force Portal, and from there head to Virtual MPF, he said. The goal is to move 85 percent of MPF actions online. Once the transformation begins, however, it doesn't mean Airmen still can't get personal customer service. "There's a contact center Airmen can call 24 hours a day, seven days a week to get help when they need it," Mr. Beyland said. "PSD also doesn't mean the Air Force is doing away with MPFs — Airmen can still get help there too. But it saves the Air Force and its people time and money when MPF actions are accessible online." To make the transition easier, personnelists and mission support squadron commanders have been sent training programs so they can better explain the transformation initiatives to their customers, which include guardsmen, reservists and civilians. "' "This is a smarter way of doing business and will result in improved consistency and accuracy of information, fewer errors in people's records and expanded customer service hours," Mr. Beyland said. "Web and contact center technologies have proven (themselves) and PSD will make life easier for the warfighter so they can concentrate more on their mission and less on paperwork," he said. "That's as simple as it gets." Saber patrols extend force protection outside gates BY STAFF SGT. LARA GALE __ 376th AEW Public Affairs Editor's note: Staff Sgt. Laura Gale is a reservist assigned to Hill's 419th Fighter Wing and currently deployed to Mana Air Base. MANAS AB, Kyrgyzstan (AFPN) —Jostling down the roads outside this base at 30 miles an hour in a Humvee gives an intriguingly candid snapshot of the host nation. As the vehicle rolls through, men and women on bicycles nod, children on horses wave, cattle and sheep stare before ambling out of the way toward field after field of farmland. The security forces members behind the wheels have seen this snapshot dozens of times; what they're looking for is anything new or suspicious in the picture that might indicate hostility toward the base. With the drone of a C-130 Hercules overhead, Staff Sgt. Kevin Bovee said, "That right there is the reason we're out here. If someone was to try to do something to our aircraft, this is where they'd try to do it." There has never been anti-aircraft activity in Kyrgyzstan to date, but force protection means never taking anything for granted. "Until you see it, you don't realize how low they fly and for how long," said Sergeant Bovee, as the C-130 dropped into view just above the tree line. The saber patrol, as these surveillance patrols are called, covers a wide area outside the base, weaving through numerous villagesand thousands of acres of open farmland. Surveillance is only one purpose of the patrol, another is prevention. By explaining their presence, the security forces members on patrols help prevent misunderstandings that can lead to hostility. This patrol generally stops in a particular village, where children come running to greet the Airmen as soon as the Humvee rolls in. Diplomacy is important, Sergeant Bovee said. The Airmen are trained to keep impact on the villages to a minimum, driving only on necessary roads and keeping potentially intimidating weapons out of sight. He made a point to introduce himself to the people in this village when he was deployed to Manas two years ago, explaining his team's presence through the interpreter who accompanies every patrol. "I've had people come to me and tell me about suspicious people, or plans they've heard about," Sergeant Bovee said. Base security is in good hands with these dedicated Airmen, said Senior Master Sgt. Daniel Arvin, security forces operations superintendent. "They know that what they're doing here is important, and they all want to do their best," he said. Hopefully, what they're looking for on these patrols will never be out there, but they know that could change any day, he said. As they diligently continue with the daily surveillance mission, patrols accomplish an important secondary function. Making their rounds through the busy village streets, the patrols are a sign that the Americans at Manas are serious about their mission — turning jets around safely in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and the overall war on terror to help bring peace and stability to all nations. If all goes well, one day soon the Humvee that rolls through will be the last. Photo by Staff Sgt. Lara Gale Tech. Sgt. Edward Sfleo interacts with a child during a saber patrol outside of Manas AB, Kyrgyzstan, March 3. Sergeant Sileo recently deployed to Manas from Homestead Air Reserve Base, Fla., and ts with the 376th Expeditionary Security Forces Squad-' ron. |