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Commander says "Thank You"

  • Published
  • By Colonel Tim Wrighton
  • 315 Airlift Wing Commander
CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. --  Now that the dust has settled from the ORI, we dodged another hurricane and normal operations have resumed for most of the 315th Airlift Wing, I wanted to take the time to recognize an awful lot of hard work that was done by some very skilled and capable Airmen.

Together, Team Charleston worked to overcome the many challenges that present themselves in preparation for an ORI. After the Exercise in May, it was very apparent that Team Charleston would need to work together and perform Herculean efforts to pass this test. Innovative methods were employed to bring us together, for example, the Team established Tiger Teams (comprised of both 315th and 437th personnel) to solve many of the challenges we faced: Redeployment, Chalk personnel distribution, Super Chalks, and especially Communications.

Many of the old processes were revisited and paradigms were torn down, with a new, "Why can't we?" mindset. It worked wonderfully, as some processes are being considered for "Best Practices", and well they should be.

A noteworthy part of the ORI preparation and conduct was that it was Team Charleston that solved problems, created new processes, and performed with success. No one unit or Wing for that matter can capture all of the credit, but the 315th AW played a significant roll in the overall success of both Wings. Some examples of this great teamwork stand out.

The Communications team performed tremendously, especially during the ADVON and Redeployment times. It was inspiring seeing Master Sergeant Kenny Johnson and Senior Master Sergeant Denise Swick working together to make our communications work. They worked so well together, and used their team so well, that even though the Wings were not tasked for Comm, they would have earned an Outstanding if they were. They overcame an incredible amount of adversity to succeed, and at one time, we thought they were Siamese Twins, wherever one went, the other was sure to be there as well! They exemplified the great teamwork and camaraderie between the 315th AW and 437th AW that made the ORI a success.

Our Intel and Legal offices performed as well as they could possibly perform. On several occasions, IG team members commented that these two 315th AW offices were among the best, not only in the Air Force Reserve, but in the military in general. You are both truly the best the Air Force has to offer.

Our Aerial Port members were on top of their game for the entire inspection. After the last Chalk was launched during the deployment phase, I was told that the two Ramp Leaders walked away into the shadows with the swagger of a winner. They talked confidently between themselves as if they had been friends for years and then it was noticed that one of their reflective belts was blue, and the other green. This epitomized to me how well we worked together.

The aircraft scheduled for Chalk 8 broke just after engine start, and required significant maintenance investigation to locate the broken part. It just so happened that one of the 315th Log Planners on Chalk 9 was a Supply person for Boeing in his civilian capacity. He was able to identify the part immediately and pass that info on to a 437th Supply person who knew exactly where that part was in the parts kit and passed it on to a young maintainer to install. A successful takeoff resulted minutes later. This is just another in a long line of Team Charleston success stories.

Some of this hard work also came from outside of Team Charleston. Without the 172 AW, Jackson ANG, MS. there would not have been "Super Chalks" a concept employed with extreme success here resulting in maximized time on the ground at Alpena.

The bottom line is that Team Charleston is not just a concept, it is a reality. The many successes that individuals and units from Charleston Air Force Base have enjoyed over the years and especially during the ORI have been a direct result of Teamwork between the two Wings stationed here. Be proud of your accomplishments, as I surely am, and know that Team Charleston is the premier airlift team in the world.