Photo By Staff Sgt. Sean Martin | U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. David Gay, a 354th Air Expeditionary Wing low observable...... read more read more
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The 354th Air Expeditionary Wing forward deployed a small contingent of Airmen to Misawa Air Base, Japan, December 3-10, during Operation Iron Dagger by utilizing Multi-Capable Airmen.
Multi-Capable Airmen are specialized Airmen who have learned skills outside their career field, allowing the 354th AEW to do more with fewer people.
The largest example of MCA with the 354th AEW at Misawa AB come from maintenance. Although they are often lumped together, Air Force maintainers come from several different Air Force Specialty Codes (AFSCs) and traditionally have specific skill sets.
“Multi-Capable Airmen get their name from the fact that they have 54 additional tasks added to the training records and once certified, are able to perform basic crew chief maintenance,” said Senior Master Sgt. Michael Hutcherson, 354th Air Expeditionary Wing assistant maintenance superintendent.
The Multi-Capable Airmen concept is an Air Force wide program aimed at being able to send a limited number of people to an austere location and still be able to accomplish the mission.
“This program is a complement to Agile Combat Employment (ACE),” said Hutcherson. “Our footprint is smaller because due to the MCA concept, we don’t have to bring so many of one AFSC. The Airmen I have here are capable of doing more than what their main AFSC qualifies them for.”
Once chosen, Airmen attended a course specializing in their new skillset.
“Selected individuals attend a 12-week course,” said Hutcherson. “So for that time, they will not belong to their units until completion of the course.”
These Airmen were hand selected based on certain criteria.
“We are being selective of those that we bring into this program. We are targeting Senior Airmen and above who have their 7-level [certification], but we do have some 5-levels in there as well,” said Hutcherson. “We go after Airmen who have that familiarity with the aircraft. Airmen who are in the Maintenance AFSCs have a basic understanding of how the jet works as well as the terminology used within this world making for an easier transition.”
Currently, there are approximately 40 Airmen qualified in the course.
“These Airmen have to maintain proficiency in their respective AFSC’s because they still belong to their owning organization,” said Hutcherson. “With that being said, our MCA Airmen come out, once a month, to get certified. During our mini generation sorties is when we try to qualify these MCAs.”
With MCA being a new concept, the feedback received by those Airmen already certified is something that will make the program even better.
“The Airmen in this program really enjoy this concept,” said Hutcherson. “In your own AFSC, you’re used to the day in and day out of your job, and this gives them the chance to step into someone else’s career and see what they deal with on a daily basis. This enhances that cohesiveness amongst various organizations because when you understand what the other jobs are having to go through, you have an appreciation for what they’re doing.”
| Date Taken: | 12.08.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 12.15.2021 20:19 |
| Story ID: | 410962 |
| Location: | JP |
| Web Views: | 225 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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