445th FSS team takes first place at AFRC Force Support Readiness Competition

  • Published
  • By Stacy Vaughn
  • 445th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
DOBBINS AIR RESERVE BASE, Ga. --  The 445th Force Support Squadron services flight and Personnel Support for Contingency Operations team won first place in the 2015 Air Force Reserve Command Force Support Silver Flag Readiness Competition held at Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Georgia March 10-12, 2015.

The 445th had seven reservists from FSS Services Flight and three from PERSCO take on approximately 50 of their counterparts in various activities from cooking meals to lodging procedures to building a base from scratch. The team competed against their counterparts from Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado; Youngstown Air Reserve Base, Ohio; Pittsburgh, International Airport, Pennsylvania; Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama; and Minneapolis St. Paul Air Reserve Station, Minnesota.

The FSS team placed first in three of the nine events; meal preparation, reception control center (a combined services and PERSCO event) and PERSCO scavenger hunt. The team won second place in forklift operations, contingency development planning and small shelter system set-up. The team won third place in Single Pallet Expeditionary Kitchen and Babington Breakdown. The 445th team took first place overall in the competition.

"The competition was such a great experience to be a part of. It showcased the bond we built within our unit and different career fields to get the job done. Winning first place against other Reserve, Guard and active-duty bases really says a lot about the determination and the high standards set in this wing," said Senior Airman Jessica McMillian, 445 FSS career development journeyman.

This year's event was the first time PERSCO was allowed to compete.

"It's been five years since we last participated in this event. This is the first time PERSCO was involved," said Senior Master Sgt. Jim Highland, 445 FSS Military Personnel Flight superintendent.

Highland, the team's mentor throughout the competition said Silver Flag is a requirement for services members but not PERSCO. He would like to continue to have PERSCO members participate in Silver Flag to hone their training skills while having some fun.

"One event that was a challenge for the team was the OPERATION Everybody Panic scenario. It was a two-mile course that seemed to have everything. It had search and recovery, ATSO (the ability to survive and operate) training, litter carry up and down multiple hills all while carrying a weapon throughout the course. There were explosions going off and deceased "victims" found along the way that the team would have to transport back to camp to process," Highland said.

Master Sgt. Jessica Pruitt, 445th FSS food service specialist, was proud of her fellow Airmen when she heard the results.

"Other squadrons have an advantage because they run a dining hall. We don't have that luxury," Pruitt said. "This proves the passion and drive that they have to win." 

The wing reservists worked as a team throughout the competition, facing obstacles along the way in the various events but it paid off when the winning team was announced.

"During the building of the small shelter system we noticed that we were missing two valuable pieces from our inventory so the evaluator had to find us the correct pieces which should have already been included. It took some time to acquire the pieces we needed, so the team we were facing gained quite a big lead. Once we received the pieces we put our heads together and not only caught up to the competition but beat them in that category. That was one of our first events in the competition and it was such a great start to all of the accomplishments we made together throughout the week," said Staff Sgt. Alison Barnes, 445 FSS force management journeyman.

Highland said both PERSCO and Services came together for the joint team Reception Control Center (RCC) event. This scenario consisted of a two-person PERSCO team and a two-person Services (lodging) team. The group had to in-process 164 personnel within 2.5 hours. 

"For PERSCO this involved manually inputting data to a spreadsheet as well as manually completing 30 Air Force form 245s. Services had to also manually input data and assign beds. Scoring was based on accuracy and time," Highland said.
The Wright-Patt team had only one error and was the only team to process all names within the allotted time.

"I'm proud of everyone on our team. Thanks for the support of everyone that came down.Doing something like this has a positive effect on us as a reservist since it's something we don't experience too often, said Tech. Sgt. Harold DeBolt, 445th force management technician.

Will they be back next year?

"This Readiness Challenge competition was quite an event and we'd like to do it again in the future," Highland said.