A training squadron here is offering students the first-ever spacelift course.

Taught by instructors of the 392nd Training Squadron, the two-week class provides students training in spacelift concepts, capabilities and operations.

There was a need for the course. In January 2004, Air Force Space Command asked Air Education and Training Command to develop a familiarization course for spacelift.

The squadron’s space cadre implemented the request and developed the new course. The course creates a foundation for meeting the common demands of both the 30th Space Wing and the 45th SW.

The course identifies core competencies for all spacelift personnel, which drove the need for a combined class for east and west coast units -- and even further between range and lift squadrons on the same base.

“Personnel could be at their jobs in spacelift for a year or longer and not know what their counterparts in the range or spacelift squadrons were doing,” said Capt. Dewey Lively, a spacelift fundamentals instructor. “The greatest hurdle and success for all involved has been to derive a common language between the units.”

The course will be validated during the first three classes to verify that its content meets Space Command requirements and is in the most logical sequence.

The class starts approximately every seven weeks for officers and enlisted in space and maintenance career fields. The class gives all newcomers to spacelift the knowledge to prepare them for their new positions. Each class averages 12 students for a total of 90 students per year.

“This marks a revolutionary step toward the creation of the ultimate space professional,” Captain Lively said. “Each student will have a distinct advantage when they report to their unit armed with a conceptual grasp of the spacelift picture.”

(Courtesy of Air Force Space Command News Service)