Improving air mobility responsiveness tops agenda at en route conference
More than 40 Air Mobility Command senior officials responsible for developing policy and directing operations that impact the en route system attended the conference which featured topics like Prime Knight and the Rhein-Main Air Base closure.
Each en route location offers Prime Knight thats provides lodging, meals and transportation services for deployed AMC aircrews.
"Prime Knight is important because it directly contributes to the execution of air mobility missions," said Col. Richard Phillips, commander of the 715th Air Mobility Operations Group based at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. "How well we help aircrews in obtaining adequate transportation, billeting and meals when they deploy from the States impacts how quickly we can turn an aircraft for the next leg and maintain velocity."
The colonel said the conference reinforced how hard headquarters AMC and members of the ERS work to make the system better.
"For example, maintenance trainer aircraft availability, air transportation standardization testing and Mobility 2000 implementation are all important initiatives to improve our system and air mobility responsiveness," Phillips said. "We have a tremendous mobility team, and it's exciting to see what's happening to make our team even stronger."
From force protection to Navy-operated terminals, the three-day conference highlighted challenges en route locations face, said Col. David Miller, commander of the 721st Air Mobility Operations Group based at Ramstein AB, Germany.
"This conference gave us an opportunity to spend valuable time with AMC senior leadership," Miller said. "It was time well spent for each of us and ultimately for the AMC en route system."
During his briefing at the conference, the colonel stated the Germany realignment associated with the Rhein-Main closure scheduled for 2005 remains on course.
"This is a huge effort moving along quite well," Miller said. "The AMC and USAFE (U.S. Air Forces in Europe) staffs have their work cut out for them by trying to balance and juggle limited resources with lots of competing priorities. But they continue to do a great job synchronizing their efforts to ensure we get the best possible outcome for what will almost certainly be the European mobility infrastructure for the next 50 years."
He said the conference also helped emphasized the mportance of the ERS, which provides the stage for what AMC does-move people and cargo.
"It's (ERS) the infrastructure, the field command and control, logistics and transportation support that it takes to keep the airplanes moving quickly and efficiently to their destinations and then back for more," Miller said. "In peacetime, contingency, or war, our mission stays
pretty much the same-we fight in place, move airplanes, passengers and cargo day in and day out."
At the conference, Phillips said fruit from the Year of the En Route System from 1997 is still blossoming.
"Thanks to Gen. Walter Kross' (former AMC commander) foresight and today's leaders, our nation continues to make enormous investments by improving en route facilities, fueling systems and airfield pavements," he said. "We are directly benefiting from the emphasis of past and current commanders placed on the Year of the En Route System. The investment will ensure AMC's ability to deliver and sustain combat forces for years to come." (FROM AIR MOBILITY COMMAND NEWS SERVICE)
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