Mission Support Group enables Airmen to deploy

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Carolyn Viss
  • 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Editor's note: this is the second of a four-part series on each of the 7th Bomb Wing groups and their roles in the upcoming Operational Readiness Inspection.

While jets are taking off from the runway here and abroad, six squadrons in the 7th Mission Support Group are working together to support the next sortie and deploy Airmen to fight the Global War on Terror. 

Their skills will be put to the test in the upcoming 7th Bomb Wing Operational Readiness Inspection Oct. 2 to 8, and nothing could prepare them more for such a daunting task than to exercise and exercise again. 

"The MSG has built one heck of a team," said Chief Master Sgt. Thomas Buchanan, 7th MSG superintendent. His role in the group is to provide advice and make recommendations to the group commander on any enlisted issues. Having worked on the Exercise Evaluation Team and been the 7th MSG liaison with the Deployment Control Center, he's got the birds-eye perspective on how the group is doing and said they're ready for anything. 

"In aftermath of 9/11, the Air Force asked us to stand up four brand-new wings in the Middle East," Chief Buchanan said. "We had to do that at a moment's notice. Yes, the ORI is a pretty aggressive schedule, but early in October of 2001 we were asked to do this exact thing." 

The six MSG squadrons - logistics readiness, force support, security forces, communications, contracting and civil engineering - provide a myriad of functions that keep enable Airmen to focus on the primary mission: deploying in support of the Global War on Terror, the chief said. He's seen them work together and perform above capacity for these Phase 1 exercises. 

"In this Phase 1 ORI, which is essentially 'going to war,' the MSG holds significant responsibility for the 7th Bomb Wing's success," said Lt. Col. Paul Farkas, 7th MSG commander. "Our job is to deploy Airmen at moment's notice, with all their mission-essential equipment. It's a lot of work, and it takes a lot of people and a lot of moving parts." 

"We've been doing it for almost two decades since the first Gulf War," the colonel continued. "The way we do that, in many cases, is in smaller teams with a strategic amount of time to plan. There's some sense of predictability in the process." 

In the ORI scenario, however, that time line is compressed, he said. Now we're deploying 600 Airmen and their equipment, including air crews and maintenance Airmen. 

"You've got a lot to do in a short amount of time," Colonel Farkas said. "What I see us doing well is learning and predicting where areas are that may cause problems in that complex puzzle." 

In addition to all that, their everyday mission to protect the installation and maintain and secure networks and base infrastructure has to be kept running at top-notch efficiencies through the ORI, he said. 

The group's "greatest challenge," according to Colonel Farkas, is no different than any other organizations'. 

"We've got a very busy mission going on," he said. "Many personnel have deployed, are deploying, or have just returned from deployment, real world, and that means ... each exercise, we've had different folks playing key roles in the OREs and ORI." 

In spite of that challenge, however, during each ORE the group has built processes, validated training, focused on target areas to improve, and tackled them successfully, Colonel Farkas said. 

"What we've got to do to succeed in the ORI is touch every individual and make sure every individual knows what their role and what their job is," he said. 

So far, they've been doing great, Chief Buchanan said. The personnel deployment facility line is working well, and cargo processing has occurred on time. 

"Attitude is everything," Chief Buchanan stated. "I want every Airman for those three days of the ORI to have positive attitudes, smiles on their faces, and, as George Patton said, always do more than what's required of you. Whether you're processing through the line, a member of a cargo or personnel function, or generating jets, you're very important to Dyess Air Force Base and very important to 7th Bomb Wing." 

Both reminded Airmen that it's each person's individual responsibility to be ready at all times. Having bags packed with the correct inventory, keeping your health in check, and knowing where you're supposed to be and when will keep the huge deployment processing running smoothly. 

"The adaptability of the 7th Bomb Wing and the flexibility of the Airmen who make it up is key to success on daily basis and for the ORI," Colonel Farkas said. "I see it every day. Every exercise, we've been able to adapt and overcome any obstacle ... and I expect to do the same for the ORI."