Are you ready? Prepare, listen, work hard

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Joni Lee
  • 11th Transportation Squadron commander
BOLLING AIR FORCE BASE, D.C. --  With the Expeditionary Air and Space Force in full swing, we all know it is possible to deploy on short notice to remote and underdeveloped places that some of us have never heard of. Are you really ready to go if you get that call today? If you prepare, listen and work hard, you will be.

Here are some questions I've heard people ask:

Why do I need an annual health assessment or why is a particular immunization so critical to being eligible to deploy? That answer is pretty simple. Medical readiness is absolutely essential to living and working in an environment with poor sanitation, lack of fresh food, extreme temperature variations, etc. Serious illness can fall upon the most physically fit person in those conditions -- conditions that many of our deployed forces are facing today.

Why do I need to go through so many training classes to be deployment eligible? I've heard that question quite a few times over the past several weeks.

I always relay the story of my time at Rhein-Main Air Base during the Gulf War. At one point, the base was providing refresher chemical warfare training and explosive ordnance recognition training six times a day. The demand was even greater than that after the first SCUD missiles were launched. Troops from all services that transited through Rhein-Main were very, very interested in every word from the instructors of those classes.

I've also heard from some friends who are currently deployed for Operation Enduring Freedom. They have numerous stories about deploying to a bare base and having everyone play a role in force protection. Combat arms training on an M-9 or M-16 may seem like a waste of time for those of us who are not in the security forces squadron, but when you're responsible for air base ground defense at your deployed air base, I think you'll wish you had a little more weapons-proficiency training.

Why does someone tell me what I need to have in my mobility bag? Many years of experience go into developing those lists of mandatory and suggested items for your mobility bag. I'm sure some of our fellow airmen serving in Afghanistan and the surrounding area of responsibility appreciate having everything in their personal bags. There was no Shoppette, BX or commissary when those folks arrived. It even took a while to find a source of potable water at some of our deployed locations!

The family support center station in most deployment lines always has some very valuable information. In most instances, the FSC people are the wing's experts on personal and family readiness. Again, experienced people have spent many hours developing booklets, pamphlets and numerous handouts packed with great advice on how to prepare yourself and your family for a short-notice deployment.

It's important to have a plan for the little things like who will cut your grass, and for the big things like who will pay your bills and take care of your pets and your children.

Finally, let's talk about your job. It is that "thing" you will do while deployed. With more than 20,000 Air Force people currently deployed and several career fields still affected by Stop-Loss, you already know the Air Force is stretched thin. So when you deploy, you may not have the office expert or the person(s) you usually rely on to help you out. Therefore, you're expected to be the best you possibly can be; everyone who deploys will be filling a critical position.

But don't worry. The U.S. armed forces are known for having the best training in the entire world. Every training scenario from basic training to our deployment exercises are structured for you to face challenges for the first time in a training environment. If we faced these challenges in a war zone for the first time, we wouldn't be the best Air Force in the world. So, take all of our exercises seriously!

Whether it's a deployment, employment, force protection, major disaster or something else, treat it the way it's supposed to be treated -- it's a training scenario. Just think for a moment. Each of the major training exercises mirror something that has really happened in your lifetime.

September 11 stories are still fresh in our minds. Think about all of the stories that involved military people. Every single one of them spoke of "relying on my training." Whether that was self-aid/buddy care training, being the leader and taking charge of a hectic situation or just remaining calm to help calm others, all of those stories reflected on training.

There are many other aspects of preparedness that go into being ready to deploy. Now is the time for each of us to critically assess our readiness. Waiting until the day of a wingwide recall or a deployment processing line is too late; we must prepare now.

Are you ready? Prepare, listen and work hard.