Communications team keeps warfighters, VIPs connected

Published Nov. 24, 2009
By Senior Airman David Dobrydney
379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFNS) -- Members of the 379th Communications Squadron provide vital communication links in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility for warfighters on the ground and leaders in flight.

The 379th CS's mission is to provide airborne communications for the U.S. Central Command commander as well as any other distinguished visitors they are tasked to support, said Master Sgt. Juli Croft, the viper team NCO in Charge, deployed from Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho.

"We provide access to both classified and unclassified information and secure voice capabilities," Sergeant Croft said. This gives leaders the ability to make decisions about operations in real time should the need arise.

"Normally the communications infrastructure is embedded at the location into which they're flying. The Airmen of the 379th CS provide a communication bridge from one ground spot to another," said Master Sgt. Bryan Doyea, a viper team member deployed from Grand Forks AFB, N.D.

These Airmen are on a one year special duty assignment. As such, there are requirements that are above and beyond those found on a normal communications deployment.

"In order for us to go on a job, we have to be on crew orders," Sergeant Doyea said. "We have to go through [survival, evasion, resistance and escape] training, water survival training and high-altitude chamber testing. Within the Air Force communications community there are a select few that get to go through this."

Those select few are drawn from three Air Force specialty codes to give the team a wide range of knowledge.

"We have computer operators, tech controllers, and (satellite communications) operators." Sergeant Croft said. The team members help those from different AFSCs so all members will be prepared to tackle any issue that may arise during a mission.

"We cross-utilize our experience, practice those skills, and train each other on our strong points because when we send out a team, it could include any of us," said Master Sgt. Dustin Sampson, a team member deployed from Scott AFB, Ill.

Teams of two or three will go out on a typical mission, which can be as short as a one-day trip to Baghdad or as long as a weeklong tour of the area of responsibility. For each flight, there are nine cases of equipment weighing 1,200 pounds to be loaded onto the aircraft.

"We are our own ground crew," Sergeant Sampson said. Additionally the team boasts a one-hour response time for short-notice missions.

Sergeant Doyea said that even after the aircraft touches down, their job continues.

"When the customer gets off the plane, often a lot of their staff will stay on board to coordinate the next stop or collect the necessary reports. Even when we're sitting on the tarmac, we are still up and running to provide the required information," he said.

The only one in the CENTCOM AOR, the viper team was first organized in 2005. At the time, viper teams were based out of Andrews AFB, Md., and were usually committed to supporting other VIPs when then-CENTCOM Commander Army Gen. Tommy Franks requested support, Sergeant Doyea said. General Franks requested a team be stood up within the AOR for his communication purposes and since then, the CENTCOM commander has been the primary customer for viper support.

As time passed, the spectrum of operations the viper team supports has gradually expanded. When they aren't tasked to fly with the CENTCOM commander, the team has supported flights carrying other officials such as the secretary of the Air Force. On occasion they are even asked to support coalition partners.

"When this team was first established, its mission focus was AOR-specific, but after several years the scope has expanded. We've flown from Europe all the way over to Japan," Sergeant Doyea said.

Sergeant Sampson best summed up the viper team credo.

"Basically, it's anytime, anywhere," he said.

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