Teamwork enables AWACs successful deployment

Published Oct. 28, 2011
By Brandice J. O'Brien
Tinker Public Affairs

TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- It was late May when Air Combat Command tasked the 552nd Air Control Wing with a deployment. Unlike most current deployments, 552nd ACW members didn't know the details of the tasking when they processed for deployment. When there could have been confusion and chaos, the air control wing didn't miss a step.

The ACW launched crews at an impressive pace. Once deployed, there were more challenges. Most Airmen would describe these challenges as harrowing. But not the those of the 552nd. They never faltered.

"I was pleasantly surprised at how relatively smooth things went. I have been around this sort of deployment in the past, and between the 552nd ACW and the 72nd Air Base Wing working together, getting out of town went relatively well," said Col. John Rauch, 552nd ACW commander. "We completed an exercise in the fall and had gone through some of those scenarios and a lot of it was very similar with the exception of the fact that there were holes this time in what we knew -- where were we going, how much was going -- but we knew we had to lean forward."

Leaning forward is something Col. Bob LaBrutta, 72nd Air Base Wing commander, agreed with and knows how to do well. Col LaBrutta attributes their success to several factors.

"We have forged an outstanding relationship with all of our mission partners on Tinker. Establishing effective communications between the operational units, like the mighty 552nd ACW, is essential to our deployment machine being prepared 24/7 to get iron, equipment and personnel into the fight, anywhere in the world, on a moment's notice," he said. "Because Colonel Rauch and his team had such great situational awareness on what might be required for this tasking, and they provided that information to our deployment experts, it allowed the 72nd ABW to lean forward and ensure America's Wing was ready for action. I'm very proud to say that when the balloon went up, Tinker responded in an exceptional manner. In fact, the 552nd ACW was one of the first NATO partners downrange executing the mission in support of Operation Odyssey Dawn! That's a testament to this installation's mission focus, teamwork and readiness."

Colonel Rauch said the deployment tasking wasn't a complete surprise to his wing. They had followed the news and kept abreast about happenings in Libya. But, when it came down to the certainty of a deployment, the wing commander didn't have the answer. In fact, he said when he thought a call might come in, it didn't.

Instead, 24 hours later, on a Saturday afternoon, the tasking came down and the wing went to work.

Just prior to sending off crews, the location and number of needed Airmen changed, but Colonel Rauch said the 72nd ABW didn't hesitate in dealing with the change of information and Airmen were out-processed. Roughly 36 hours after the initial call came through, the first Airmen deployed.

"What we demonstrated as an installation is that we have the ability to pack up and react very, very quickly and get people out of town very quickly," said Col. Greg Roberts, 552nd Operations Group commander.

Col. Stella Smith, 552nd Maintenance Group commander, said that the deployment validated what she knew the 552nd was capable of doing.

"This deployment is the clearest example of our readiness," she said. "There's no better way to prove you're ready to perform your mission than to be called upon to do it for a national action and be able to do it quicker than anyone could have predicted. This was a validation of how we prepare and the 72nd ABW was a part of that."

Colonel Rauch said the most difficult challenge of the first phase was getting the equipment and gear airlifted to the deployed location. In several cases, the Airmen arrived at their deployment destination with what they packed. It took roughly 10 days before all the equipment and tools came in.

Additionally, to the troops' surprise, they arrived at a naval station with limited facilities.

Maj. Rick Turner, 552nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron Maintenance Operations officer, said the U.S. Navy did what they could to support the Airmen, setting them up in a construction trailer and small facility for their work operations. Within living quarters, the Navy set the Airmen up with cots.

"For all intents and purposes, we had to set up everything from scratch," said Lt. Col. Peter Mykytyn, 965th Expeditionary Airborne Air Control Squadron commander.

Within 24 hours of their arrival, the Airmen began flying missions. The situation on the flight line was far from ideal. The Airmen worked in excess of 12-hour days, lacked hangar space and faced blustery gusts and cold temperatures at night, often making their work more challenging.

Major Turner said in one instance an aircraft needed repair. But, because the unit didn't have their tools and gear yet, they couldn't get to the problem area. Even, if they could, the wind prevented any repairs. That particular aircraft was sent home and a replacement was brought in.

Capt. Frederick Alcazar, 965th Airborne Air Control Squadron "A" Flight commander, said he was especially impressed by the maintenance crew.

"Oh my goodness, they worked every day and they got our jets ready as humanly possible and to me that was incredible," he said. "They worked day and night, never had a day off and got us off the ground every single time."

While the crew handled the massive workload, they were handed yet another unexpected challenge. Within 30 days of arrival, the Airmen received news of a change of station. The second locale was as limited as the first. Other military organizations were occupying the area and were also scouting free space.

Although they faced a similar bare-base environment, this time the Airmen knew what they needed and wanted and had a better idea of who to contact to ask for necessities.

Six months have passed since the initial orders came in and while many Airmen have returned to Tinker, there are others still abroad supporting the mission. Despite all that has happened, the Airmen remained professionals and epitomized the core values.

"The story that's not told is what the men and women of the 552nd endured to make this mission happen. I've spoken with individuals who got a phone call that said, 'get home, pack up your bag and standby, and they were out the door inside of 36 hours and what their families did to support that," said Lt. Col. Mo Elmore, 552nd Operations Group deputy commander. "When these individuals arrived at the deployed location, with no bedding and no food, they demonstrated the ability to be able to live in a stressful environment and still continue fly at a terrific rate and be focused and do the job and do it well without errors. Those are the behind-the-scenes stories and you cannot help but be proud of."

Colonel Roberts mentioned that the Airmen were not prepared in some ways, but because they were professional, they achieved results beyond reasonable expectations..

"On very short notice they proved they could pack up and go, employ and excel in an area that we were not spun up, trained and expecting to enter a conflict," he said. "They did it exceptionally well and very professionally, and many of them had very recently returned from another contingency deployment."