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Two AMC units receive nod for 2010 Chief of Staff award

  • Published
  • By Hq. AMC Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  The commander of Air Mobility Command, Gen. Raymond Johns, recently announced the command's nominees for the Air Force Chief of Staff Team Excellence Award. The 726th Air Mobility Squadron's C-17 Value Stream Analysis Team and the 612th Air Operation Center, Air Mobility Division, Haiti Flight Operations Coordination Center Team, will now compete against other teams across the Air Force for this prestigious award.

The C-17 Value Stream Analysis Team, located at Spangdalem Air Base, Germany, was nominated for streamlining maintenance processes and programs that saved millions of dollars and freed up thousands of man hours.

The team identified problems with refueling guidance which had caused significant efficiency and training problems. The team used Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st century lean techniques for management to properly identify process problems and develop countermeasures to streamline performance.

Once improvements were developed, an Air Force Form 22, Technical Order suggestion, was written proposing 76 suggestions to Air Mobility Command, which resulted in 100 approvals. The suggestions resulted in a 50 percent (1,000 feet) reduction in motion, reduced 1.5 hours from every refueling mission, eliminated more than 50 excess steps, reduced ground-servicing time, and minimized time between flights allowing for faster take-off times. In all, the new refueling procedures enabled the removal of 221,000 excess man-hours, adding up to $8.4 million in avoided annual costs.

The 615th Contingency Response Wing, along with partners 621st CRW, 601st AOC and 612th AOC, were nominated for their outstanding contributions to humanitarian efforts in Haiti by supporting the Air Mobility Division's Haiti Flight Operations' Coordination Center Team.

Working in coordination with the 601st and 612th Air Operation Centers, the team stood up a Regional Air Movement Control Center, which prevented ramp congestion by metering airflow into and out of the airport.

When the Haitian prime minister required the Department of Defense to prioritize all air traffic coming into Haiti, the team managed military and civilian flights into the Port au Prince airport. Their exceptional command and control efforts increased air traffic flow by 900 percent. Their efforts resulted in 3,940 sorties, 10,151 passengers moved, 18,194 short tons delivered, and the evacuation of nearly 17,000 American citizens.

In addition to recognizing outstanding team performance, the Chief of Staff Team Excellence Award also shares best practices within the Air Force. It promotes a systematic approach for enhancing mission capability, improving operational performance, and achieving sustained results while maximizing efficiency and effectiveness. (Capt Paradon Silapasornprasit and Master Sgt. James Pierce contributed to this story.)