Photo By Katherine Spessa | Maj. Andy Miller, 455th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron Det. 1 senior...... read more read more
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“All of the knowledge it takes to run an airfield is in this room,” Maj. Andy Miller, 455th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron Det. 1 senior airfield authority representative, said as he gestured to his team members.
The room he is referring to is small, clocks on the wall indicating the time in local, Zulu and eastern. At each of the four desks in the room are pictures of children and spouses, Valentine’s Day gifts sling-loaded by helicopter into the small airfield from their families back home.
“I’ve never been in charge of an airfield where I had this small of a team,” Miller said. “In previous experiences, I’ve had over 100 people operating an airfield, and the support that goes with it.”
At Jalalabad Airfield, Afghanistan, Miller has four people.
The detachment is comprised of an airfield management liaison officer, an enlisted airfield management specialist, flight safety officer and a pavements and construction equipment specialist.
“Everyone works well together,” Miller said. “The sum of all the parts is greater than the whole – that’s very true in a situation like this.”
His flight safety officer, Capt. Travis Neiheisel recalled a time when the team came together to fulfill roles they typically wouldn’t have to.
“When I first got here, we were in the rainy months. It rained for about two days and it started to form a bit of a lagoon in front of out building,” Neiheisel said laughing. “Everyone pitched in together, filling sandbags, getting hold of a water pump and pumping water away from our building so it wouldn’t start to flood.”
The unit again came together to ensure that air traffic and airfield operations moved safely and efficiently when three C-17 Globemaster IIIs delivered cargo, stretching the capabilities of the small airfield.
“We’re a special collection of talent that is able to synchronize together very effectively,” said Miller.
The airfield management team is the only Air Force unit on the small installation. They are able to take care of everything airfield-related with support from Air Force personnel, U.S. Army and contractor partners.
“You can get things done – not through a work order – but by meeting someone in the chow hall or running into someone on the sidewalk,” Miller said about the tight-knit base. “You can get things done because you know the right person to talk to. As each individual builds relationships around the base, you can really identify capabilities that can be capitalized on.”
| Date Taken: | 04.06.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 04.16.2017 13:56 |
| Story ID: | 230501 |
| Location: | JALALABAD AIRFIELD, AF |
| Web Views: | 159 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Small detachment runs airfield at Jalalabad, by Katherine Spessa, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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