Proper preparation can save lives

  • Published
  • By Al Strait
  • 21st Space Wing
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. (AFNS) --  Recently I had the opportunity to spend a couple of days in the great Colorado outdoors. Like any trip, there was a lot of planning involved.

To start, I got out my proven checklist I had used for previous outdoor trips. I reviewed the checklist and started gathering gear. After gathering the gear and reviewing the checklist one final time, I also took advantage of a few operational risk management opportunities.

First, I checked the weather and road conditions for the final destination of the trip. Road conditions were good with no expected areas of concern. The weather report predicted temperatures ranging from the mid 50s to the mid 20s, with a chance of scattered rain showers at the lower elevations and light snow at the higher elevations.

Once at our destination, I spoke with friends who arrived earlier to see what weather conditions were like at higher elevations. They reported favorable conditions with two to three inches of snow on the ground at the higher elevations which made conditions perfect for the trip. Even though we had planned properly and felt confident with our preparations, there were unexpected problems.

The first problem or hitch came when the propane regulator for cooking at the lower elevation developed a small leak. Despite several "survivor man" corrective actions, using the propane stove was a no-go. We were able to solve this problem by using the backup one-burner stove.

The second glitch came as we started setting up the tent right at timberline. The light snow, which we had expected, started to fall. What we did not expect was the additional 12 to 15 inches, which soon made the domed tent take on a flatter look. Fortunately, the tarp we added to the pack at the last minute helped keep snow off the tent.

The final glitch came when the temperatures went from the mid 20s to the mid teens, which made any gear that was a little wet take on a very frozen state. Again, proper planning paid off as we had extra winter gear at the base camp.

Now you might ask, what does planning for a winter outdoors trip have to do with anything?

On the drive home I drew a lot of parallels of the experience to what all of us can do on a daily basis to keep our families safe and complete our various missions. For example, during our daily activities we should remember the importance of good ORM practices. Have we winterized our cars? Do we have a survival bag in our car for winter conditions? Have we checked the furnace filters or other home items to ensure our safety? Are we prepared if we get an early snow storm that keeps us homebound for two to three days? Do we follow the laws with regard to wearing our seatbelts or texting while driving?

For wing personnel, the parallels are even greater as we finalize preparation for the upcoming operational readiness inspection and unit compliance inspection. Have we run all applicable checklists to ensure we have all the key elements of our mission covered? Have we reviewed ORI reports from other wings? Have we worked with the functional experts to get updates on any changes to the Air Force Instructions?

Regardless of our planning, there will still probably be unexpected glitches we must deal with. What is our back up plan when we get the short notice deployment tasking? What do we do when our ace planner comes down with flu-like symptoms and is on quarters for one to two weeks?

Despite proper preparations and planning, these are the realities we face in completing the mission.

We cannot forecast future problems, but with proper planning and following the ORI battle plan, we will be mission ready.

Remember, prior planning prevents poor performance.