Air Force leaders discuss future of Airmen in joint operations across Iraq

Published April 5, 2011
By Senior Master Sgt. Larry Schneck
9th Air and Space Expeditionary Task Force - Iraq Public Affairs

BAGHDAD -- U.S. Air Force leadership from the United States, Iraq and other locations across Southwest Asia gathered on Victory Base Complex, Iraq, March 22, 2011, to review the future manpower support of U.S. forces by joint expeditionary tasking and individual augmentee Airmen as Operation New Dawn enters its final months.

"This conference was a good first step toward further refining the needs of the joint, U.S. Forces - Iraq warfighter with Air Combat Command as the lead force provider and identifying current training requirements for Airmen," said U.S. Air Force Col. Mitch Sperling, 9th Air and Space Expeditionary Task Force - Iraq director of mission support. "The objective is to keep flexibility in the hands of U.S. forces."

In the Iraq joint operating area, there are about 1,000 JET Airmen filling warfighter positions and joint billets. Forty-five people attended the one-day conference.

"Our Airmen are having a significant, positive impact on the mission," said U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Russ Handy, 9th AETF-I commander. "They are skilled, flexible and understand the bigger picture of why they're in the fight."

This was the first of planned, quarterly meetings to talk face-to-face. The roomful of leaders included 17 theater commanders, who were able to identify their mission needs directly to the people who make the decisions on filling deployment taskings. These included military members like U.S. Air Force Col. Jeffrey Kelly from U.S. Air Forces Central and civilians from Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., and Langley Air Force Base, Va.

Some of the biggest issues discussed include getting Airmen to units on time and how to transition deployment requirements as U.S. forces transition to the next phase of its relationship with its Iraqi partners.

According to a security agreement between the U.S. and Iraq, USF-I must return all bases to the Government of Iraq by Dec. 31, 2011. As U.S. Army units reposture, Air Force leaders want to make sure the movement of Airmen is synchronized to those plans.

"Getting to sit in the same room helps us meet the milestones we're trying to reach by matching the right number of Airmen with the right skills to their jobs," said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Jeff Kronewitter, 467th Expeditionary Intelligence Squadron commander. "We have to maintain this through the hand-off of the mission to the Department of State."

This manpower conference is one way U.S. forces are planning the personnel part in the turn-over of the remaining 73 bases. It fits into a series of stakeholders' meetings at facilities and installations around Iraq. They call the meetings a rehearsal of concept exercise.

A ROC drill allows the manpower planners, among other military members responsible for the transition and return of a base, to practice and plan the necessary steps to closing the doors and turning over the keys to the Government of Iraq.

"The ROC results help clarify manpower requirements," said Colonel Sperling, a deployed Nevada Air National Guard officer from the 152nd Airlift Wing, Reno, Nev. "This quarterly conference keeps us working directly with the warfighter command and lets us know how the Air Force can better-serve our joint units."

Officials from Langely AFB look at this manpower conference as a benchmark for efficiently managing JET and IA Airmen requirements. They consider it as a potential best-practice that can be used in Afghanistan, as well.

"With fewer Airmen in the IJOA we have to get this right," said General Handy. "Taking care of our Airmen begins here from the impact of the decisions we make in this room."