Photo By Staff Sgt. Suzanna Plotnikov | Leadership from the 39th Air Base Wing host a commander’s call in Ankara, Türkiye,...... read more read more
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Leadership from the 39th Air Base Wing visited the wing’s two geographically separated units, learning about the crucial role the units play in the region.
During the visit, they received extensive mission briefs and toured facilities at the 425th Air Base Squadron located in Izmir and the 717th ABS in Ankara, Türkiye, highlighting their roles in providing essential support to military and diplomatic relations.
At the Izmir Consolidated Support Facility, Allied Land Command and Çiğli Air Base, the 425th ABS operates as a small wing, providing administrative support to all military personnel stationed in the area including the Army, Navy and Marine Corps.
“Myself and my leadership team rotate through these different locations weekly to maintain these great relationships that we have,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Yonca Nice, 425th ABS commander. “When a new Airman comes to a new wing, we provide all the services they need. The services I’m talking about are the post office, finance, travel management office, customs, travel tickets and medical services.”
Although the unit is smaller than a “traditional” Air Force squadron, they comprise a wide range of skills and capabilities.
“We have a great team; everybody knows exactly what they need to do and they execute the mission,” she said. “Having 17 different Air Force Specialty Codes in the squadron is a big plus. Everybody brings different perspectives to the table and they have different backgrounds and lingo that they speak so we are able to think outside the box.”
Their recent participation in exercise EFES-2024 proved their operational capability.
“It was a three-week-long exercise and our NATO partners took part,” said Nice. “Sixteen thousand personnel came into Çiğli AB and our air terminal processed all of the aircraft that came in, took care of their needs such as refueling, load and unload of cargo and the processing of personnel. Due to how successfully we executed the mission, the Turkish Ministry of Defense recognized our team.”
Moreover, the squadron plays a pivotal role under the Çiğli Turnover Agreement, facilitating U.S. Air Force contingency operations and supporting NATO Rapid Deployable Corps in Istanbul.
In Ankara, the 717th ABS supports military and diplomatic missions of the Office of Defense Cooperation-Türkiye, Defense Attache Office and the U.S. Embassy focusing to improve the U.S.-Türkiye relations and further U.S. strategic interests in the region.
“The uniqueness of the 717th ABS is that we have active duty members from seven AFSC’s, civilians and contractors working together to perform many roles for the U.S. Embassy, ODC-T and NATO partners,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Rodney Dowell, 717th ABS antiterrorism program manager.
The squadron manages an array of responsibilities ranging from tenant services, postal services for DoD active duty, retirees, DoDEA and U.S. Embassy personnel, logistical support and executing antiterrorism and force protection measures.
“We also have a K-12 international school that our NATO partners utilize,” said Dowell. “DoDEA has 200 students with 75% belonging to partner nations.”
The squadron’s strategic importance is further highlighted with the Turkish Defense Authorization which plays a major role in Host Nation coordination of movements for material, vehicles and construction projects.
“We are the focal point of all bilateral agreements and relationships with Türkiye,” said Dowell. “Our existence here doesn’t just strengthen the relationship with Türkiye but with 72 other partner nations.”
The recent visit by 39th ABW’s leadership underscored the importance of these two GSU’s. They play a pivotal role in maintaining and building partnerships, furthering the 39 ABW’s mission of defending NATO’s Southern Flank.
| Date Taken: | 07.15.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 07.26.2024 07:36 |
| Story ID: | 477077 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 206 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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