TOP STORY>> Snapshot: Col. Charles Brown Jr.

By 19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

(Editor’s note: 19th Airlift Wing and installation commander Col. Charles Brown Jr. talked about his vision, goals and plans for the wing in an interview July 15 with Senior Airman Scott Poe and Tech. Sgt. Jason Armstrong, 19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs. An edited transcript follows.)

Q. How did it feel to be selected to come back to Little Rock AFB as the installation commander?

A. It was definitely humbling. The thing that I probably thought about the most in the lead up to taking command is ‘what is the best way I can take care of that wing and the installation and really share what the base has to offer to the community and what the community has to offer to the base?’ 

[I didn’t have] a lot of sleepless nights, but I definitely had a lot on my mind as to not wanting to fail. [I have] so much passion and love for the mission and the Airmen here that it’s a lot of weight to put on one person’s shoulders. I’m the commander by position, and that comes with its own scope of authorities and responsibilities, but it’s actually a team. That was the part that really was the ‘warm blanket’ that brought me in and took some of that pressure off of me. You would think the pressure got greater when I took command, but it actually was lessened when I saw the quality of our Airmen and the quality of the mission—the genuine trust I could have in the Airmen to do their jobs day-to-day and see them well-balanced and fit. I saw families out doing things together and saw the community rallying around them. 

It’s really hard to describe what it feels like for someone who hasn’t had a genuine home in over 21 years to actually come back to the place that feels like home, live on the installation and be reunited with friends and family. 

You know, if my career were to end today, I wouldn’t be happy about it, but it would definitely be at my high point being here. 

Q. What is your vision for Little Rock AFB under your command?

A. To do the mission day-to-day, and not have to worry about [those little details] at my level. I don’t need to dive down into the lowest tactical levels to find out if people are doing their jobs. Knowing those questions are already answered probably saves me six months [of time] so I can do things like reach out to the community, and I can host civic leader tours. [This allows us to] expand our horizon by transforming the wing into a C-130J wing, ensuring it’s right-sized and that it’s resourced to be combat effective. We’ll be first to get there, in what has been an 11-year transformation of transferring C-130H and E aircraft either into retirement or into the Reserve or Guard components. By producing combat aviators and C-130J’s that come together and go out into the far reaches of the globe and execute that mission comes a new paradigm, if you will, of looking at the way we do business. Being able to ensure that from the flightline to the front gate we’re resourced properly, our personnel are here properly, and that our infrastructure is right-sized—we don’t have excess capacity where we don’t need it. 

What that means to us is we are being good stewards of taxpayers’ [money] when we’re doing everything we can, and we’ve ensured we have all the resources and training that we need. We trust our civilian leaders, and they trust us back; we have confidence they have our back, and we will do what we’re asked when called upon. Then to know I don’t have to worry about unit level dynamics: one, because I have great group commanders and unit level commanders, but, two, because the Airmen know what they’re doing and the pride they have in mission success goes beyond any need for me to ever micro-manage them. 

Q. How would you describe the importance of our relationship with the Central Arkansas community?

A. What I see is not necessarily a ‘need’ to have an Air Force base here, but a true desire to have the Air Force base here. There are a lot of other places where you could fly C-130s, and we exhibit that in the state of Texas and Japan and Germany, but the reason we’re home to Combat Airlift and the center of all things C-130 is because we have a community that’s embraced our mission. 

We have a partnership with the 314th Airlift Wing, 189th AW and the 913th Airlift Group that they find value in being in Arkansas; they genuinely enjoy being in Arkansas. When you have the perfect combination of an ‘at-home’ advantage, as well as mission impact, and then you have people who want to be here and people who strive to stay here and [thousands] who decided to retire here—I think that’s a testament to the community. Their desire to keep the mission here and the advantage we have is that we are much more effective through the community support we have–from all the way down to Hot Springs, north up to Vilonia and Russellville and across the state. 

Q. What are your thoughts on leading Combat Airlifters?

A. I tell you, the thing that has made me put my uniform on every day and gotten me out the door is the Airmen. Whether I’m in the position to lead or whether I’m being charged to follow, the folks I have worked with over the last 21 years are the best people I’ve ever met. 

The leadership part is an honor. It’s really sad when it goes away. I hope to lead every day; I hope to end each day thinking to myself ‘did I make a difference in anybody’s life today?’ Did I stop and talk to an Airman who I thought could use a ‘hello’ whether they were in a good mood or bad mood? And so, if I can’t find time in my day to do that, I regret it at the end of each day. I do my best to get out there and genuinely thank them, because as far as I’m concerned, I have the best job in the Air Force and if I can’t share that and make this tour as valuable for everybody on this base as it is for me, then I don’t feel like I did my job to its fullest. 

TOP STORY >> For the birds

By Tammy L. Reed

19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

Little Rock Air Force Base pilots invest a lot of time in flight training assessing and mitigating risks they will face delivering beans and bullets to warfighters downrange. 

One of the biggest risks aircrews face, no matter where they are flying, are the risks of bird strikes. Bird strikes are just that: A bird, or birds, striking a plane in flight causing damage to the engines, windshields and other parts of the plane; they are a major risk and can be costly in aircraft damage and human lives. 

It’s a serious safety issue for Air Force pilots in general and Little Rock AFB in particular. The base’s very location puts it right on the convergence of the Central Flyway and the Mississippi Flyway; two major corridors birds use to migrate twice a year in the spring and fall.

Limiting exposure to bird strikes is a full-time job for base safety and airfield personnel.

“We have a lot of birds that come right over central Arkansas, right when and where we’re flying all the time, and that’s why we’ve led the Air Force in bird strikes,” said Kimm Hunt, USDA wildlife biologist.   

It’s also one of the reasons why Hunt works with Team Little Rock in the 19th Air Wing Safety office.  He runs the Bird/wildlife Aircraft Strike Hazard, or BASH program, and his work helps reduce the number of bird strikes affecting Little Rock’s pilots. 

“When I first got here (eight years ago), the bird strike rate was about 17 bird strikes per thousand hours of flying, now we’re down to less than 10,” Hunt said. “We’ll never get rid of bird strikes … but we can try to reduce their number as much as possible, and keep it at a manageable level.  Our goal is to keep it under 10.”

One of the tools the base uses to reach that goal is one Hunt developed himself, called the Bird Strike Threat calculator, or BST.  

Mission planners use the calculator to answer five questions: date, time, altitude they are flying, weather pattern and route they are flying.  All questions directly related to a pilot’s chance of running into birds. Their answers give them the bird strike threat level for that plan. 

“The threat levels are from one to five, with one being low. What this allows them to do is if they come up with a four or five, they can change one or more of those five parameters to reduce that number down to a one or two,” Hunt said. “They can look ahead and determine how much of a threat they’re going to have on that mission and mitigate from there.”

They use the BST in addition to the Avian Hazard Advisory System and Bird Avoidance Model tools used Air Force wide, further reducing the chance of bird strikes.

Base leadership made that addition here, as it has been proven to be effective for the local BASH program. 

BASH isn’t just for the birds, as deer and other animals often run across airfields to collide with the planes moving there, causing as much damage as avian collisions.  

Hunt has a number of tools on the ground he uses to make the airfield safer both for the pilots and their planes and those animals. 

One is the 5 miles of electric fence that surrounds it.  Hunt is in charge of maintaining the fence and keeping animals on the other side of it.  There’s a lot of animal psychology used in training the deer to maintain a healthy fear of that fence.

He explained that deer’s hair is hollow, and they are fairly well insulated, so they don’t feel the non-lethal shock from the fence unless they touch it with their nose or mouth.  They get to where they will go in and out of the fence, or run right through it.  He has to retrain them to stay away.  

“Maybe four times a year, I’ll go along the hot wire about every few one hundred yards, and put some peanut butter on there…They can’t resist licking the peanut butter. Obviously they get shocked, and it reteaches them to not go through the fence.”

He has to watch his results though, as he wants them scared of the fence, and not of peanut butter.

Other methods he uses to keep animals away involve shooting pyrotechnics into the air, firing air cannons and just running at them or harassing them.  

Another is as simple as the height of the grass bordering the airfield itself.  He explained years of experience and research has shown that keeping grass around the airfield mowed between 7 inches and 14 inches is the ideal vegetation height to reduce large numbers of wildlife.  

Boiled down you get this: Above 7 inches, flocking birds won’t use the area because they can’t see each other and predators. If grass gets higher than 14 inches it goes to seed, providing a food source to the field and a place to hide for a number of creatures who are then food sources to raptors and coyotes. 

“If we are going to err, I tell the airfield personnel and the mowers to err on the high side, as there are way too many bird species that like the low grass,” Hunt said. 

Airfield Manager Kerry Miller said he and his crew work hand-in-hand with Mr. Hunt on BASH. 

“We discuss the grass heights and the management proposals as well as the BASH plan for how we handle the birds on the airfield, so it’s a joint environment.”

When it comes to harassment and dispersal of wildlife from the airfield, Hunt gets help from Miller’s front counter personnel.

“I train them to use techniques such as the pyrotechnics and the air cannons. They take care of it when I’m not around.” 

Unfortunately the dispersal techniques don’t always scare the birds and other animals away, and the wildlife biologist has to resort to more lethal methods. 

“On occasion depredation is a necessary evil though, because after a while they get used to the dispersal techniques. They run off for a while, then they come back.”

He said you have to retrain the animals to be afraid of the noise, so they don’t come back to your airfield. “They need to see that some of them don’t make it, and that there are consequences to staying.

“Depredation is always the last resort, the last thing we want to do,” he said, “But it is a necessary step.”   

Pointing out a deer stand right outside the fence, he added that LRAFB allows and encourages hunting to help manage the animal population. He uses hunting as another tool to help with BASH, as hunters help keep animal numbers down and they use the animal as well.

If Hunt does have to put an animal down such as a deer or goose, he will donate the meat to the “Hunters feeding the Hungry Program” to utilize them, too. 

One of the more personal tools Hunt uses in his work to keep pilots and aircraft safe, is talking directly to the pilots in aircrew awareness. He teaches pilots what to look for and what to avoid when they are flying. 

“For example, if they see a bird ahead of them the pilot needs to pull up because the bird will normally dive. It’s little techniques like that,” he said.

The techniques Hunt imparts and all the tools he uses for the BASH program has made a difference to LRAFB. Miller considers all of this integral to keeping the airfield safe. 

“We don’t have that many strikes actually on the airfield, and he’s a very big reason that we don’t.” 

TOP STORY >> Congratulations Master Sgt. selects

LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. — Sixty-nine  Team Little Rock technical sergeants were selected for promotion to master sergeant Thursday. Overall, he Air Force selected 5,301 technical sergeants, 22.4 percent of the 23,619 eligible, for promotion to master sergeant during the 2015 E7 promotion cycle.

This is the first master sergeant promotion cycle to incorporate a two-phase selection process.The two-phase process included a Phase I score based on Weighted Airman Promotion System factors (enlisted performance reports, time in grade, time in service, decorations points, promotion fitness examination and skills knowledge test scores). Eligible Airmen whose Phase I scores met the Phase I cutoff for their control Air Force specialty code are considered for promotion during the Phase II central evaluation board.

Airmen selected for master sergeant will be promoted in order of promotion sequence number beginning Aug. 1. Selections are tentative until the data verification process is complete, which is normally within 10 days of the promotion release date.

Congratulation to the selectees:

19th Airlift Wing

Michael  Barrows

19th Maintenance Squadron

Christina Belles

19th Force Support Squadron

Mark  Benavidez

19th Maintenance Group

Takia Braddy

19th Maintenance Squadron

Mark Brown

19th Maintenance Squadron

Roshawndra Brown

19th Logistics Readiness Squadron

Justin Buchholz

19th Security Forces Squadron

Robert Campbell

19th Logistics Readiness Squadron

Jonathan Castleberry

19th Civil Engineer Squadron

Phillip Chappell

19th Maintenance Squadron

Jeffery Clouse

19th Medical Support Squadron

Kevin Cruz

50th Airlift Squadron

Micheal Elliott

19th Maintenance Squadron

Paul Evans

19th Security Forces Squadron

David Fernandez

19th Logistics Readiness Squadron

Christopher Flores

19th Security Forces Squadron

Mario Frank

52nd Airlift Squadron

Anthony George

19th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Donald Gettman

19th Force Support Squadron

Michelle Griffin

19th Maintenance Group

Thomas Grover

19th Operations Support Sqaudron

Bradley Guffey

19th Maintenance Squadron

Duane Harris

19th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Shannonlee Hill

19th Force Support Squadron

Travis Hudson

Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Daniel Insurriaga

19th Operations Groups

Joseph Isaac

19th Logistics Readiness Squadron

Joseph Joson

19th Communications Squadron

Joshua Larson

19th Security Forces Squadron

Jesse Lesko

19th Maintenance Group

Justin McCaffrey

19th Operations Support Squadron

Robert Miller II

19th Security Forces Squadron

Shalenna Mitchell

19th Comptrollers Squadron

Daniel Osorio

52nd Airlift Squadron

Kevin Peaslee

19th Security Forces Squadron

Nicole Perez

19th Civil Engineers Squadron

Cedric Perkinson

19th Force Support Squadron

Joseph Phelps

19th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Jason Pierpoint

19th Comptrollers Squadron

Michael Raver

19th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Celina Schilling

19th Logistics Readiness Squadron

Tasha Sheerin

19th Aerospace Medicine Squadron

Brandon Shook

19th Operations Support Squadron

Jacob Silvia

19th Civil Engineer Squadron

Justin Stanford

19th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Butch Stewart

19th Civil Engineer Squadron

Kelley Tolbert

19th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

John Torres II

19th Civil Engineer Squadron

Tobin Walton

19th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

George Wild

19th Aerospace Medicine Squadron

Tony Winkler

19th Maintenance Squadron

Diego Yoshisaki

19th Medical Support Squadron

Stacia Zachary

19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

314th Airlift Wing

Casey Auvil

314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Richard Badger

314th Maintenance Squadron

William Chesnutt

48th Airlift Squadron

Zachariah Edwards

314th Maintenance Squadron

Kristopher Hodges

314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Theodore Holliger

314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Leif Kuester

314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Aimee Lakin

314th Maintenance Squadron

William Oxenford

62nd Airlift Squadron

John Recinos

314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Justin Reese

314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Kristofer Reyes

62nd Airlift Squadron

Scott Shields

314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

Mark Smith

62nd Airlift Squadron

Stephen Smith

714th Training Squadron

Arron Stanley Jr.

314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron

TOP STORY >> EES/WAPS briefing team visits LRAFB

Personnel from Headquarters Air Force and the Air Force Personnel Center will visit Little Rock Air Force Base on Tuesday to share information about the Enlisted Evaluation System and Weighted Airman Promotion System changes. 

The meeting with unit representatives is scheduled for 8 to 9:30 a.m. at Hangar 1080. During the briefing, EES/WAPS subject matter experts will speak about changes that have already been implemented, those slated for implementation in the months ahead, and the reasons and philosophy behind the changes. 

“This is one of the most significant changes to the enlisted evaluation and promotion system in a generation.  So, we feel it’s important to bring this information directly to Commanders and Airmen and allow them to ask questions and get immediate answers from the experts,” said Maj. Gen. Peggy Poore, AFPC commander.”

For more information about EES/WAPS changes, go to the myPers website, select “enlisted” under the active duty, Guard or Reserve drop down menus, and then select “evaluations” in the left hand column.

For more information about the briefing, contact 2nd Lt. Brittany Jones, 19th Force Support Squadron Manpower and Personnel Flight Chief, at 501-987-7159.

TOP STORY >> The final flight

By Senior Airman Harry Brexel 

19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs 

The C-130H has been a Herculean workhorse for the Air Force since it was first obtained in the mid-1970s. 

Airmen from the 314th Airlift Wing at Little Rock Air Force Base have been training aircrews and maintenance on the basics of the C-130H airframe for more than a decade.  

Air Force active-duty squadrons are transitioning from the older H-model aircraft to the newer J-model in the coming years. The 314th AW will focus on J-model training and the Arkansas Air National Guard will fully take over all future training of H-model students in less than three months. 

The C-130J Super Hercules offers a variety of benefits over the legacy H-model. C-130Js fly faster, can carry more cargo, travel further and require a minimum crew of three instead of five due to advanced computer technology. 

Recently, the final H-model training flight for the 314th AW took flight. The mission involved maintenance students who were taught by active-duty instructors from the 314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. 

Training for H-model pilots and loadmasters has already transitioned to Arkansas ANG Airmen and maintenance training is the last to be handed over completely. 

Though the J-model is more advanced and has improved capabilities, some Airmen have mixed feelings about the transition.

“I grew up on the older H-models,” said Staff Sgt. Daniel Elmore, a 314th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron C-130H dedicated crew chief. “It’s a sad day for me; the maintenance for these planes is more hands-on and these Hercs have more character.” 

The remainder of active-duty 314th AMXS C-130H instructors will re-train to the C-130J, after training for Arkansas ANG members is complete.  

“I’ll miss the old-school legacy models,” said Staff Sgt. Jason Manning, a 314th AMXS dedicated crew chief. “We now need to learn a whole new system, though it won’t be the first time transitioning to a new aircraft for most of us.” 

Airmen from the 314th AMXS started advising Arkansas ANG instructors on H-model operations in October 2014 and will continue to do so for approximately another year.  

“This is a great step for the Guard,” said Staff Sgt. David Rogers, a 189th Arkansas ANG crew chief. “It means bigger responsibility and a larger footprint for us.” 

The 189th Airlift Wing has the largest C-130H fleet in the Air Force. Ongoing upgrades to the C-130H will add an additional 40,000 hours of flying time to the plane. The unit will have more than 20 of the legacy models and various ANG and Reserve units across the country will receive additional H-models. 

While the book has closed on active-duty training of the legacy C-130s, the next chapter in the long history of C-130H instruction at Little Rock Air Force Base continues with the help of Airmen from the Arkansas ANG. 

TOP STORY >> Pharmacy makes improvements to lobby

By Tammy Reed

19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

Although there are some processes pharmacists can’t change to make filling your prescription faster, staff at the 19th Medical Group pharmacy are changing what they can to make the wait shorter and more comfortable.

Capt. Andrew Tate, director of pharmacy operations, and his team members recently collected surveys from patients and added ideas and concerns from the pharmacy comment box to get feedback on pharmacy operations and customer satisfaction.  

“Overall we received a lot of positive feedback...but we also received comments and suggestions on ways we can make it better and more friendly to our patients. One of the biggest comments was long wait time and how can we shorten it,” Tate said.  “Our new prescription drop box was one result from that survey.”

Tate said this is a great option for patients, as they don’t have to wait in the pharmacy lobby to pick up their prescriptions. He explained that they can fill out the information on the envelope, put the prescription in the envelope, drop it in the box, then come back when they can to pick it up.  

“Barring any issues with their prescription, it should be ready. One thing to keep in mind is this is for chronic medications and not for anything like an antibiotic for yourself or your child; nothing that you need immediately, but that you can come back to pick up.”

The drop box is located on the main check-in desk in their newly rearranged lobby.    

The changes to the lobby centered on patient comfort and efficiency during their wait, the captain said. They rearranged the seating from rows of chairs to small groups of seating around tables. This makes it easier and more accessible for patients to sit and read or talk during their wait. 

They also moved the pick-up line from window No. 4 to window No. 1, and made a serpentine line allowing more space for patients to pick up their prescription without blocking the main walkways to the rest of the clinic.  

Tate said they made those changes because it was often confusing to patients when the pharmacy was busy, as the pick-up line for the main pharmacy would run into the pick-up line for the refill pharmcy.

Another change patients can see is new signage throughout the clinic and pharmacy. Tate said they have ordered new signage to clearly communicate where patients need to go when moving throughout the clinic and pharmacy.  

By implementing these changes, he hopes to make customers’ visits a nicer experience and increase pharmacy efficiency to reduce wait time.  

“Although we think we made the best use of the space we currently have, we are always open to suggestions and comments from our patients, to better serve them.”

One suggestion he has for patients is to visit the pharmacy earlier.  

“To cut down your wait time, we always suggest that you come in as early as you can. Our peak volume time picks up around 10-10:30 a.m. in the morning and lasts through 2 to 3 p.m. in the afternoon, and we are extremely busy. We open at 7:30 a.m., and our lobby is fairly empty for a while.” 

TOP STORY >> Iron replaces iron

By Senior Airman Stephanie Serrano

19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs 

As a C-130 departed Little Rock Air Force Base June 9 destined for Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan, members from the 61st Airlift Squadron, 41st AS and 19th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron began the third iron swap mission this year. 

“An iron swap is taking a plane from down range that is experiencing maintenance issues and swapping it out with a plane that is maintenance-ready and air-worthy,” said Capt. Derek Moser, 61st Airlift Squadron pilot. 

Every aircraft is unique and its use down range determines whether it needs to be swapped out or not. 

The iron-swap mission gives home-base Airmen a unique opportunity to contribute to the base’s global missions. 

“I was ecstatic to find out I was able to participate in this mission,” said Airman 1st Class Jacob Miltner, 61st Airlift Squadron loadmaster. “Being able to help the troops accomplish the mission down range is pretty cool.”

Iron swap missions can take up to 10 days or more to complete. However, the planning for these missions can take months. A lot of team effort goes into coordinating missions, Moser said.

In addition to normal preparations and maintenance checks for the aircraft, members must also ensure the departing aircraft is working properly and outfitted with all the defense components needed downrange such as flares. 

Aircrew members must check all of their international clearances, diplomatic clearances and route of flight.  

“It’s great to see all those pieces come together to execute the mission,” said Moser. “It’s important to swap out planes which are having maintenance issues in order to provide a high level of airlift support for the Central Command commander, and have the planes and the capability to air land or airdrop supplies and personnel in remote locations within the area of responsibility.”