Fairchild airfield receives 'thumbs up' from AMC By Master Sgt. Scott King 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. (AMCNS) -- An evaluation of Fairchild's air traffic system in September revealed once more what exceptiona Published Oct. 8, 2004 An evaluation of Fairchild's air traffic system in September revealed once more what exceptional teamwork can accomplish. Inspectors from Air Mobility Command conducted an Air Traffic System Evaluation on the 92nd Air Refueling Wing, noting "exceptional service to host and tenant units" and finding "zero" observations out of more than 500 checklist items - only the second time in AMC history a base has had zero observations. "We have been preparing for this inspection for a better part of the year," said Dennis Locke, airfield manager, 92nd Operations Support Squadron. "The inspectors were impressed with the professionalism of our personnel and the technical knowledge they shared with them." The evaluation focused on the quality, adequacy and safety of the air traffic system supporting flying operations around the base. The team inspected several areas: airfield operations management, airfield management, air traffic control, terminal instrument procedures, ATC and landing systems support and civil engineer and communications support. "We couldn't have had the results we got without the outstanding support we received from civil engineering and the comm. squadron," Mr. Locke said. "They were instrumental to the wing's success -- my hats off to them." The 92nd Civil Engineer Squadron worked with the 92nd OSS to prepare the airfield for the inspection, taking aggressive action to remove obstructions from the operations area. "Our power production shop made extensive upgrades to the emergency power generators on the airfield ensuring power is always available to vital air navigation systems," said John Gibson, community planner, 92nd CES. "We were also the lead base for the AMC 'E' Series mapping project where the area around the base was surveyed to determine the absence of obstructions that could affect our flying mission - providing a safer airfield for our crews." The 92nd Communications Squadron also played a vital role in the success of the evaluation. "Our personnel are instrumental in maintaining radio and weather/navigational equipment used on the flight line, in the command post and in the air traffic control tower," said 1st Lt. Tanya Smith, mission systems flight commander, 92nd CS. "As the inspectors noted in their summary, 'The 92nd CS is providing elite service for the base flying mission. Through combined efforts with maintenance support, they are ensuring that the Air Traffic Control and Landing Systems equipment is maintained to high standards and provide safe operation for the air traffic environment.'" However, the heart of the evaluation fell on the shoulders of airfield management personnel. "I feel the inspection went exceptionally well. We were well prepared in advance to meet the team and provide them everything they required upon their arrival," said Tech. Sgt. Randall Simonson, chief of airfield management operations, 92nd OSS. "Out of eight ATSEPs I've have been through, this was the most successful, but the one thing that stood out during this inspection was [that] our 3-level airman were outstanding," he said. "The inspectors asked impromptu questions about their job that would normally be a 5 or 7-level question and all our airman did a great job finding the correct information and showing them we train well and were ready to meet the challenge." Air Mobility Command News Service is a service of the Internal Division Office of Public Affairs 503 Ward Drive, Room 214 Scott Air Force Base, Illinois 62225-5335 618-229-7821