Air Guardsmen train Air Force's airfield operators

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith
  • National Guard Bureau Public Affairs
ARLINGTON, Va. (AFPN) --  Air National Guard officials here said recently that by using their knowledge and resources in airfield operations, they are successfully training the Air Force's next air base managers. 

In the Air Guard Airfield Operations Officer Training Program, Guardsmen train active-duty officers in airfield operations at any one of 10 air traffic control squadrons. Now, some of the first graduates are entering their active-duty careers.
 
"The air traffic services community has taken on the responsibility of grooming our next generation of airfield operations officers in a total force program," said Scott Duke, chief of National Guard air traffic services.
 
The program was established in 2006 when two active-duty Air Force officers began their airfield operations training at the 243rd Air Traffic Control Squadron in Cheyenne, Wyo. Today, more than 30 AOOT trainees are earning their titles by training throughout the Air Guard. 

The two-year program fully qualifies the students as airfield operations officers.
 
Airfield operations officers manage the day-to-day operations of an air base's air traffic, airfield and base operations. There are slightly more than 300 in the Air Force, Air Guard and Reserve. 

A spokesman said Air Force officials ended their airfield operations officer training program at Altus Air Force Base, Okla., in 2007. Air Guard instructors stepped in to run the training. 

Trainees are now rated by Air Guard specialists in their air traffic control towers, radar facilities and airfield management operation centers. Of special note is the Air Guard airfield management training. 

Under a previous program, only 14 training days were allocated for airfield management, but now 60 days are set aside for what operations officials call a "critically important facet of airfield operations." 

"That incorporates our lessons learned from Airmen in the war zones," Mr. Duke said. "And this program would not be successful without our experienced squadron commanders, air traffic control and maintenance Airmen. Those folks are lifting it up ... are ensuring there's quality training, which is producing quality airfield operations officers." 

Two other additions to the program recently have enhanced the training and provided expeditionary opportunities for the active-duty students: 

-- Ninety-day deployments:  They allow fully qualified officers to deploy in support of contingency operations and give them hands-on experience in combat airfield operations. 

-- "First Look" program in Washington: This two-day course on total force initiatives includes tours of the National Guard Bureau and the Pentagon and meetings with senior airfield operations officers, Air Guard and Air Force leaders and career field managers.

"Those programs provide an invaluable experience when the graduates report to their first active-duty assignments," Mr. Duke said. 

He said they also transformed the Air Force's training by integrating the National Guard's overall expertise in homeland missions, including deployable air traffic control and landing system knowledge gained from disaster relief missions like Hurricane Katrina. 

"Working with the Headquarters Air Force's Flight Standards Agency, we refined the program and put in place a successful partnership between the active duty and reserve forces," Mr. Duke said. 

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