Command post stays vigilant during darkest hours

  • Published
  • By Capt. Shane Balken
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE MILDENHALL, England (AFPN) --  “Ain’t it funny how the night moves?” sang Bob Seger and his Silver Bullet Band. Although Mr. Seger probably was not thinking about an Air Force command post, most strange occurrences seem to happen while the world sleeps. No one knows this better than command post controllers working the night shift.

Looking at the ranks of the young airmen who work in the command post here, it would be hard to guess the large amount of responsibility that rests squarely on their shoulders.

Young airmen, some with as little as a year and a half of total service time, handle an enormous amount of responsibility dealing with life’s most serious events.

“I think the command post is one of the most misunderstood career fields out there,” said Lt. Col. Arnie Schumacher, the 100th Air Refueling Wing’s command post director. “We have a lot of young folks doing a huge job with an incredible amount of information to deal with. They’re in constant interaction with senior leaders and are often the first person to break any bad news to commanders.”

Twenty-year-old Airman 1st Class Kari Kling joined the Air Force in October 2002 and is often the first voice many strangers to the Air Force hear.

“We represent the Air Force and always need to be polite and professional on the phone,” she said. “I routinely handle calls ranging from the Red Cross, parents looking for their active-duty children, noise complaints, (Royal Air Force) Lakenheath’s emergency room and on-scene security forces. So it’s important to project a good first impression.”

Airman Kling said her toughest time working in the command post was when a string of automobile fatalities occurred here last fall.

“The hardest part for me was delivering bad news to the commanders, especially when family members were killed. I still have a job to do, but sometimes it’s very hard,” she said.

Because of the sensitive information that passes through the command post, a minimum of two controllers must work together during a shift. Between 2 to 4 a.m. is when controllers prepare themselves for anything.

“It’s almost typical. I just wait for it,” said Senior Airman Steve Peck, regarding strange calls coming in after the area pubs close.

Airman Peck, a 26-year-old controller, has been here his entire four years in the Air Force and said his toughest experience in the command post was after a suicide occurred at RAF Fairford, England.

“I received the initial notification on the suicide and in the same day, a gas pipe burst as well at RAF Fairford,” Airman Peck said. “The painful circumstance of the event, in addition to directing large numbers of calls coming in about the gas pipe and other issues, was one of the worst days for me.”

When asked how controllers deal with tough situations like death, Airman Peck said they just pull out their checklists and go step-by-step to handle the event.

“I don’t think some airmen realize how serious these problems are and how important our job is,” he said. “After a tragic event is finished, it’s then that you sit back sometimes and think how vital it was to pass all of the correct information to commanders.”

The impact of the command post touches everyone on base in some way or another, Colonel Schumacher said.

“Everyday dealings with aircraft, driving-under-the-influence violations, assaults, injuries and death notifications come through us first and it’s a lot to ask for from our airmen who handle these situations,” he said. “I’m proud of my folks for what they do every day.”

Should you ever need to report a weird occurrence while the base is sleeping, no matter how strange the “night moves” might be, rest assured there is always someone in the command post ready to shine a light on a dark situation. (Courtesy of U.S. Air Forces in Europe News Service)