Page 5 - Nellis Creech NTTR Bullseye 4-29-16

BULLSEYE
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Piecing the puzzle together, supporting the MQ-1, MQ-9 mission
By Senior Airman Christian Clausen
432nd Wing/432nd Air Expeditionary Wing
Public A airs
CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. —
Planning, maintaining, and executing
the remotely piloted MQ-1 Predator and
MQ-9 Reaper mission has proved to be
a time and labor intensive process, yet
there are still Airmen’s stories to be told. finance personnel ensure Airmen are
Behind the scenes, Airmen from many
supporting career elds bring their skills
together to collectively accomplish the
mission as one cohesive RPA enterprise.
From the defenders at the gate to the
defenders at the Base Defense Operations
Center, security forces Airmen protect
Creech Air Force Base, 24/7/365 days a
year. In turn, they safeguard very e ec-
tive weapons systems and the Airmen
who operate, maintain, and support it. “At the 556th TES, we develop, test,
“The security forces mission here
[Creech] is to protect RPA Airmen
and infrastructure through in-depth
integrated base-defense which enables
constant RPA operations within the area
of responsibility,” said Sta Sgt. William,
799th Security Forces Squadron security
forces leader. “Without the safety of the
personnel here, our nation’s ground
troops can’t be protected by RPAs.”
e facilities these Airmen operate out
of don’t just appear…civil engineering
and RED HORSE squadrons construct
and maintain the buildings.
In addition to the need for operating
space, Airmen need the assistance of the
Host Aviation Resource Management o ce
which maintains the records of each avia-
tor’s ight history ensuring they are physi-
cally and physiologically quali ed to y.
Capt. (Chaplain) Zachary with the 432nd Wing/432nd Air Expeditionary Wing provides
ministry to Airmen Feb. 10 at Creech Air Force Base, Nev. Creech’s Human Performance
Team is comprised of the chaplain corps, operational psychologist, operational physiologist
and ight medicine doctor. By helping Airmen to be spiritually and emotionally sound,
the HPT plays a critical role in the RPA mission.
News
U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kristan Campbell to ensure they are e ective and suitable
Tech. Sgt. Travis, 799th Security Forces member, coordinates with other security forces
troops during a mass casualty exercise April 10 at Creech Air Force Base, Nev. The 799th
security forces protects and ensures the safety of Airmen who operate, support, and
maintain the RPA operations.
Like any other base, Airmen from security we provide allows secure com-
various medical career fields provide munication between the commanders
treatment to keep Airmen in the fight, to the Wing Operations Center, to the
operators.”
paid, and personnel Airmen ensure
career records are up to date. Another support function of the
MQ-1 and MQ-9 enterprise, is the
Supporting the networks used to assessing and implementation of new
keep information safe is the 799th Air aircraft, weapons, software updates,
Base Squadron communication flight. and other capabilities.
“We maintain the networks our The 556t h Test and Eva luation
operators use in support of U.S. and Squadron members work to bring new
coalition missions to keep boots on systems and technological advances to
the ground safe,” said Staff Sgt. Benja- the warfighters.
min, 799th ABS cyber transport. “The
evaluate, and deliver effective and sus-
tainable RPAs and combat capabilities
to meet current and future warfighter
requirements at the tactical and strate-
gic levels,” said Maj. David, 556th TES
director of operations.
David went on to say with the way the
threat environment changes, it’s impor-
tant to stay ahead of the curve by having
the most advanced systems available.
“Once the acquisition team acquires
a new system, is must be tested by Air
Force Material Command, and later
operationally tested by the 53rd Wing
U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kristan Campbell
U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Christian Clausen aeronautical orders.
5April 29, 2016
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in the intended operational environ-
ments,” he said.
e 556th TES also provides training
for all the new developments and systems
to qualify combat aircrew before they are
employed downrange.
When it comes to supporting the
enterprise on a personal level, the Hu-
man Performance Team (HPT), which
consists of an operational psychologist,
operational physiologist, chaplain team,
and physician to take care of the Airmen
physically, socially, spiritually, intellectu-
ally, and emotionally.
“Our mission is calibrating the human
weapon system and we do that by taking
care of Airmen and their families,” said
Chaplain (Maj.) Mark, a member of the
HPT. “Each member has their own disci-
pline of care but when we come together
we can make sure Airmen and their
families are taken care of on every level.”
To reach Airmen, each member of
the HPT attains the proper security
clearances that allows them unrestricted
access to the Airmen performing RPA
operations.
“Outside of the special operations
community we are a unique asset,” he
said. “Just like the [MQ-1 and MQ-9]
community standing up to support the
combatant commanders, we’ve stood up
to meet the needs of those supporting
those who support the commanders.”
Experiencing the Airmen’s jobs rst-
hand and the partnership within the
group allows the HPT to solving any
problems in any possible way.
With every agency working together,
the MQ-1 and MQ-9 enterprise is
brought together and makes it an integral
piece of the most sophisticated and e ec-
tive Air Force in the world.
In a 2015 RPA mission relief press
release Gen. Hawk Carlisle, Air Combat
Command commander, lauded the Air-
men who y, support, and maintain the
mission.
“What our Remotely Piloted Aircra
professionals are doing in today’s ght
and in preparing for future con icts is
simply incredible,” he said. “RPAs ful ll
critical demands in every theater 24
hours a day, 365 days a year.”
Airman 1st Class
Jaleeza, 432nd
Operations Support
Squadron host aviation
resource manager
(HARM), updates
ight records April 14
at Creech Air Force
Base, Nev. The HARM
office manages all
the aircrew members
on base by keeping
ight records, essential
documents, and