Photo By Tech. Sgt. John Galvin | Wyoming Air National Guard 153rd Security Forces Squadron member Tech. Sgt. Kenneth...... read more read more
CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Think your job is tough? It’s 3 a.m., the flight line is quiet, gate traffic has ended for the evening and there’s not a soul in sight. For members of the Wyoming Air National Guard’s 153rd Security Forces Squadron this is just another shift, in another day, in the life of these airmen. The hours are long, the weather can be brutal, but the security forces members embrace the challenges of their jobs with a “glass half full” mentality.
“I don’t try to look for the difficult part to the job,” said Senior Airman Jeff Castaneda, security forces member. “I get to see and talk to people at the gate for a little bit every day and that’s always fun.”
Security forces members are familiar with rigorous training and demanding physical requirements from the beginning.
Initial training for the airmen includes a 13-week technical school at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, where they learn security basics, air base ground defense and weapons familiarization. Airmen receive initial qualification on a variety of weapons to include M-4 carbine, M-9 pistol, M-203 grenade launcher, M-249 light machine gun and the M-240B machine gun.
Once assigned to home station, members contribute in security maintenance measures including: verifying members’ identification upon arrival on base, maintaining flight-line security, and regular safety patrols.
As the face of the Wyoming Air National Guard changes so does the approach by security forces in keeping the base safe. Recent construction has amplified commercial vehicle gate traffic, significantly increasing security forces mandatory inspections. In addition, security forces Airmen are also responsible for maintaining traffic safety and enforcing wing parking procedures around construction zones.
Along with daily and training requirements, security forces airmen are also expected to adhere to a demanding and sometimes grueling physical standard.
“Physical training for us is very important, especially when we deploy,” said Senior Airman Amber Adams, security forces member. “If you aren’t able to keep up here, then when you deploy it will be very difficult.”
SFS’s training and day-to-day work prepares them for a high-tempo deployment schedule. The squadron is currently in the Air force expeditionary force cycle with more than 10 members presently deployed for up to eight months. It is also common for numerous members to volunteer for various deployments and temporary duties.
Daily tasks, deployments and training serve not only as an operational function but also provide the opportunity to build cohesiveness as a squadron.
“We do a lot of training together so we know what each other will do in different situations,” said Castaneda. “It gives us the opportunity to know each other better. If you’re in a real-world scenario you’re with someone you’ve worked with, have done the exercises with then you know they can take care of the job.”
| Date Taken: | 05.09.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 05.09.2013 16:56 |
| Story ID: | 106671 |
| Location: | CHEYENNE, WYOMING, US |
| Web Views: | 154 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, 153 SFS: Guarding the Guard gate, by TSgt John Galvin and SrA Nichole Grady, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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