459th ARW prepares for readiness inspection

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Amber Russell
  • 459th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ANSREWS, Md. --  Living the words of the Air Force core values, members of the 459th Air Refueling Wing have been preparing for their 2012 Operational Readiness Inspection (ORI), in order to show the Air Mobility Command Inspector General team and the world the 459 ARW is ready for action.

During the inspection, Airmen will undergo evaluations which measure the ability of their unit to perform in wartime and during a contingency or a force sustainment mission, while at Joint Base Andrews or any deployed location.

"We've been training as much as possible, now we are ready to go out there and do this," said Col. Gary W. Dickinson 459 ARW vice commander. "Our preparation has been a true example of total force effort. Col. Ken Rizer, 11th Wing commander, and Col. Michael Minihan, 89th Airlift Wing commander, have consistently reached out to help us prepare for this ORI. They have been such great partners, anything we need as a leadership team they have responded and provided. It's pretty neat to see the base partners - including the D.C. Air National Guard's 113th Fighter Wing, rallying to support the 459th and we look forward to extending our expertise when all is said and done."

The show of support from mission partners has benefited the wing. Leadership for the ORI have been in place for less than a year at the 459 ARW and intensive training has been initiated for the inspection. The Ability to Survive and Operate (ATSO), efficiently under duress is the main focus of the training and the ORI.

The Operational Readiness Exercise, a simulation of the ORI, which took place during the March Unit Training Assembly (UTA), a Reserve drill weekend, gave leadership a birds-eye view of areas of improvement for the ORI.

Learning from their experience with the ORE, leaders took a proactive approach and amped up training during the April and May UTA weekends, said Dickinson. Creative training techniques such as kiosk training and a war readiness room served to prepare more than 300 members of the wing who will be deploying for this ORI.

Dickinson dubbed Lt. Col. Todd Adams, 459 ARW assistant operations officer, the "brainchild" of the kiosk training, which consisted of more than 25 events, briefings and demonstrations.

"With the unit just coming off of a 90-day mobilization prior to the winter holiday season, we had a short period of time to prepare for this ORI," said Adams. "We had to bring over 300 ORI participants plus alternates up to speed on deployment responsibilities and ATSO training. As reservists, we only had a couple of days each month to become proficient in the tasks required of us."

The Airman's Manual provided the guidance for the kiosk training, and was implemented on each Sunday of the two UTA weekends prior to the ORI. It included stations with necessary props to conduct training rotations to practice efficiently donning Mission Oriented Protective Posture (MOPP) gear in two minutes; weapons familiarization; communication equipment; casualty collection points; decontamination and unexploded ordinance trainings, said Adams.

While it is crucial for each unit to abide by the lessons in the Airman's Manual, visualizing success each step of the way could play a key role in preparing Airmen for achieving an excellent score on this ORI.

The new War Readiness Room was created to provide Airman with a detailed overview of what will occur in the deployed setting to enhance their ability to succeed, said Lt. Col. Ronald Dollesin, 459th Maintenance Group deputy group commander.

"When you have such a complex operation, things have to be visual," said Dollesin. "If leadership is meeting at the top, it can be difficult getting the message disseminated from the planners to the worker bees. What we found is the war room allows individuals to see their role throughout their entire deployment."

The War Readiness Room, coupled with two site visits to their deployed location, and the lessons learned from the ORE, deployed members are prepped for success in this ORI, said Dollesin.

Confidence in the ability to operate well under a microscope is essential to a successful inspection.

The ORI will begin with the "Position to Force" phase, the initial response process that consists of deployed members processing through a mobility line, ensuring Airmen have their mobility folders, ancillary training and shots up-to-date. At the deployed site, numerous inspectors will conduct evaluations on each unit at every turn, until the deployed members return, said Dickinson.

"The deployment will be very fast-paced," said Dickinson. "The idea behind this ORI is to simulate preparing for a 45-day deployment, which will occur within only four days."

In every ORI, the standard of excellence remains the same, but the leadership can make all of the difference.

"Col. Dickinson is doing a great job pulling everybody together," said Dollesin. "Morale is high, and everyone seems to be prepared."

The leadership overseeing the mission and the leadership of the mission partners at Joint Base Andrews are working together to ensure this ORI is successful.

The pyramidal flow of information begins at the top with leadership of the Crisis Action Team (CAT), which includes Rizer, Dollesin, and a representative from the 11th Mission Support Group and the 11th Operations Group. Information is disseminated through the chain of command from leaders and Airmen which make up the foundation of the structure.

The CAT will serve as reach back for deployed members in the ORI. They can locate subject matter experts in any Air Force specialty to ensure proficiency in case the Inspector General (IG) team finds any issues at the deployed setting. The CAT will also see to it the day-to-day operations continue to run well during the ORI.

"We're really proud of our folks," said Dickinson. "All of our hard work and preparation has been about rising to excellence; our people have done a tremendous job. The results of this ORI will be a wing grade and a reflection of each member of the wing. We will do our best to show the AMC  we can go out and do our mission with excellence in any environment."