OCR Text |
Show COMMENTARY TIMES October 8, 2009 SIP vital to our mission Weekly Sim c KW8 Hilltop times Editorial Staff: Lee Carter... Standard-Examiner publisher Mary Lou Gomy. Hilltop Times Editor Lee Anne Hensley "... Hilltop Times Writer Catherine McNally Hilltop Times Correspondent Deadlines: Editorial and news items are due by n6on on the Friday prior to the Thursday print date. To submit news items e-mail hliltoptimesOstandard.net or call (801) 625-4273. For Classified Advertising, call (801) 625-4300. For Retail Advertising, call (801) 625^4388. The Hilltop Times is published byOgden Publishing Corporation, a private firm in no way connected with the U.S. Air force, under, and in compliance with, a Memorandum of Understanding with Hill Air Force Base. The content of the Hilltop Times does not necessarily represent the views of, nor is it endorsed by, the U.S: Government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Air Force or Hill Air Force Base (collectively, the Government). The appearance of advertising in this publication, including inserts or supplements, does not constitute endorsement by the Government of the products or services advertised. Everything advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase, use or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, physical handicap, political affiliation or any other nonmerit factor of the purchaser, user or patron. Editorial content is edited, prepared and provided by the Standard-Examiner, 332. 84404. Additional editorial contea^provided by varii—.-J* \ nrf ous military and civilian wife" services and Hill Air Force Base public affairs departments. Call (801) 625-4273 with story ideas or comments, or contact the editor, Mary Lou Gomy, at mgorny@standard. net. Call (801) 625-4300 for Classified Advertising or (801) 625-4388 for Retail Advertising. Nest riinsia Tip frcm I he H^lih and Welliitii Csnler Learn to manage your time at a Lunch and Learn, Tuesday, Oct. 13. The class, designed to present valuable tips on getting your time to work for you, will be held at the Health and Wellness Center from 11 a.m. to noon. Feel free to bring your lunch. Contact the HAWC to reserve your spot at (801) 777-1215. THINK SAFETY Hill's Total 2009 DUIs: 35 Hill's Last DUI: Sept. t6 Unit Involved: 372KCC Airmen Aghlnst Drinking and Drlvlrig provide rides when daslgnoted drivers are unavailable. Call 777-1111 any time to request a ride. W RIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio — Folks, we need more vitality in our self-inspection process. I see pockets of excellence, but also many areas where IG inspections or Service Appointed Validators discover things that should have been selfdiscovered by the unit. Continuous improvement is part of our culture. We often inherit situations where compliance has lapsed, and on our watch, lapses can occur when we get pulled in multiple directions and have to balance competing priorities. Effective self-inspection is the mechanism that corrects these lapses. It provides commanders with situational awareness to successfully identify, prioritize and enforce corrective actions. It helps units accomplish their mission in a context of day-today compliance with statute and policy. Of course, it also provides everyone with confidence to face whatever no-notice inspection comes their way. The Air Force Materiel Command is refining guidance on self inspection, but don't wait for that ... here are some concepts that have worked for me over the years: Thirty-three years ago, Lt. Hoffman was told that he was the squadron ground safety officer... my first additional duty! I was directed to the incumbent who told me how he did it and introduced me to his continuity book which included a self-inspection section and checklist. I would run that checklist quarterly and to make sure I didn't get myopic in my assessment, I would swap with a sister squadron now and then to buddy-inspect them and vice-versa. lb keep the checklist current, I would read all Inspector General write-ups of other units in the major command and cut and paste anything involving ground safety into my self-inspection book. I would make pen-and-ink changes to my checklist to make sure we would not have the same write-up and I would assess and embrace best practices. In other jobs, this opportunity repeated itself over the years, even as the Air Force focus on self-inspection waxed and waned. Later, as an assistant operations officer, I had the duty of SelfInspection Monitor for the entire squadron, and I worked in a similar manner to make sure all functional areas and additional duties were actively self-inspecting, embracing cross-flow and cross-tell information, and keeping their checklists current. We would peak for announced inspections, but remained engaged all the time to be ready for the no-notice inspections. While I remain most comfortable with the physical presence of a Continuity Book, technology may offer additional techniques for this process, but the basic principles remain the same: The IG will arrive and they will use a checklist to inspect. They freely share this checklist ahead of (801)777-7000 time. Successful units will make sure they have an effective self-' inspection culture to always be prepared. Learning from others is key to continuous improvement. Make sure all areas are covered with a primary and alternate so the program does * not hibernate while one person ' deploys. When looking at write- ; ups, especially your own, conduct a thorough root cause analysis so that you deploy the correct countermeasures to fix the problem. ' The mission of the Air Force is1 not to pass inspections ... it is to ; "Fly, Fight and Win in Air, Space, and Cyberspace." Inspections look at what is important to get the mission done and to ensure compliance with statutory and regulatory guidance. Thank you for your attention on this area. Gen. Donald Hoffman Commander, Air Force Mate- ' riel Command TEAM HILL IN ACTION action.line.pa@hill.af.mil you in answering questions and solving When you call or send an e-mail, your problems before calling the Action Line. comments will be recorded and staffed through the agency responsible for action. This will help me better serve your interests. Please give your supervisor and chain of Items of basewide interest will be published in the Hilltop Times. command the opportunity to work with Phone * '^ numbers — The base agencies listed can be contacted directly if you have a complaint or a problem with their services: Security Forces 777-3056 24-hr. Crisis Information 777-3056 Force Support Squadron 777-4134 Base Restaurants 777-2043 Retirement/Compensation ,....777-6142 (civilian) Social Actions 777-3516 Employer Relations 777-7129 Military Pay 777-1851 Civilian Pay ..: : 777-6246 Air Force Suggestion........ 777:6901 Program :-'•>.:-. . Hill Straight Talk :„::*...,;.„..„ 777-9696 IC Complaints 777-5305 (for appointment). IG Complaints ;..:.i;.....,:..l.:. 777-5361 'Tremendous milestone' for national defense (after hours) Fraud, Waste or Abuse 777-5361 (recording) Loud Noise 1-877-885-9595 (complaints) 75th Medical Group 777-4918 Civil Engineering 777-1856 Hill Pride Hotline 777-7433 Public Affairs 777-5333 Military Housing 825-9392 Maintenance Safety Office 777-3333 Safety Office Hotline 586-9300 Union 777-3257 AFOSI Narcotics Hotline 777-1852 Family Assistance Center 777-3090 (when activated) ALEX R. LLOYD/U.S. Air Force Sherrie Lewis, 75th Mission Support Group, gets pinned by former co-worker and friend, Connie Denaster, 75th MSG, with her husband, Tom, nearby, as she retires after more tfiah 20 years at Hill Air Force Base. -—,. U.S./U.S.S.R INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC MISSILES BY AMY BUTLER Ogden Air Logistics History Office I n October of 1959, America's first landbased nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile went on around-theclock alert. It was an Air Force Atlas D model missile at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Gen. Thomas S. Power, then commander-in-chief of Strategic Air Command, declared it operational following a successful Sept. 9,1959, test launch, which saw the missile accelerate to a speed of 16,000 mph and traveling 4,300 miles. He stated that attaining alert status was a "tremendous milestone" for the United States Air Force, the ICBM and national defense. The Atlas D was a one- and one-half stage missile powered by liquid propellant rocket engines with a combined thrust of 360,000 pounds. The engines burned liquid oxygen and RP-1, a fuel similar to kerosene. Atlas D was 75 feet long, 10 feet in diameter, and equipped with a radio inertial guidance system. Its nuclear warhead was to yield an explosive force equivalent to approximately one megaton of TNT. Following Atlas, the Air Force fielded the Titan, Minuteman and Peacekeeper ICBMs. From October 1959 through victory in the Cold War, they constituted the land-based ICBM leg of the nation's triad for nuclear deterrence, remaining on alert along with the manned bomber and submarine legs. ' The Titan was the Air Force's and the nation's first two-stage ICBM. The Titan II stood 114 feet tall and had a diameter of 10 feet wide. The first stage had an engine thrust of 474,000 pounds and the second stage provided an additional 100,000 pounds of thrust for a range of some 5,500 nautical miles. Because of the need for more reliable and survivable land-based ICBM operations at less cost than Atlas, the Titan II had a more efficient means of fueling the missile for launch and was deployed in hardened underground silos. It was equipped with inertial guidance and Ogden Air Logistics Center — helped and the ability to carry a larger warhead than continues to help field and improve the Minuteman fleet. either the Atlas or Minuteman. As the Soviet missiles' accuracy inMinuteman I was also a product of 1950s creased, so did the need for an ICBM that Air Force research and development. Deployment began in the early 1960s, with the would accurately engage multiple Soviet first squadron attaining alert status in time targets and give surety to deterrence for the coming years. A third-generation to help successfully resolve the October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. Unlike the Atlas ICBM, the Peacekeeper, was developed and Titan, Minuteman ICBMs continue to to serve this purpose. The Peacekeeper be powered by solid-fuel rocket engines. had a three stage solid fuel propulsion Tbday, Minuteman III, the most current of system with a final liquid fuel stage. The the series, stands alone as the land-based first stage had a thrust of 500,000 pounds. The weapon system traveled at a speed of ICBM leg of the triad. It has three, solid propellant rocket motors and a post-boost 5,000 mph with a range of 6,000 nautical miles. It stood 71 feet with a diameter of 7 stage. The first stage generates an engine feet 8 inches. A single Peacekeeper missile thrust of 202,600 pounds, second stage of 60,300 pounds of thrust, third stage of was capable of delivering up to 10 nuclear 34,400 pounds of thrust, and a post-boost warheads. The significant 19-year era of stage of 315 pounds of thrust. It travels at a the Peacekeeper ICBM, credited with helpspeed of 15,000 mph with a range of more ing to win the Cold War, came to a close in than 5,000 nautical miles. It is also deployed September 2005 with the final Peacekeeper in hardened underground silos, but is only deactivation. 59.9 feet in length and 5.5 feet in diameter. Since 1959, Hill has remained an integral The Minuteman was assembled at Air part of the nation's land-based strategic deForce Plant 77, located during the '60s and terrent, helping to sustain ICBMs as well as 70s here at Hill Air Force Base. Assembly manned bombers. Hill AFB continues to be of the first one was completed April 12, a site of ICBM inspections in accordance 1962, and the last one, a Minuteman III, with nuclear arms reduction agreements on Dec. 1,1978. Beginning also in 1959, and continuing negotiations for further the base's host and ranking unit — today's cuts. I I I |