New Luke unit to stand up in Oregon

  • Published
  • By Tech Sgt. Jasmine Reif
  • 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  In an effort to meet Air Force demands for F-15C Eagle pilots, a new Luke Air Force Base detachment will stand up at the 173rd Fighter Wing, Kingsley Field, Oregon Air National Guard.

The 56th Operations Group Detachment 2, whose mission will be to train the world's best air superiority pilots, will activate on Saturday and personnel will begin arriving between the end of November and the spring of 2015.

The only Airman currently in place is Lt. Col. Christopher Clark, 56th OG/Det. 2 commander, who sees this Total Force Integration effort as an excellent way to effectively and efficiently align equipment, missions, infrastructure and manpower.

"The key requirement is to ensure the Air Force maintains the capability to meet combatant commander requirements for both surge and sustained operations," Clark said. "Because the ANG end strength is limited by U.S. Code, the only way to get more instructors and maintainers to Kingsley Field without fundamentally altering ANG force structure around the country was to bring in active-duty instructors and maintainers to supplement ongoing operations."

Clark explained that TFI is the way of the future for the Defense Department, and Kingsley is in a unique position as the only F-15C Active Association in the Air Force.

When Det. 2 is fully manned, it will be made up of 66 maintenance personnel, three support personnel and eight instructor pilots, all of whom will be full-time active-duty Airmen. However, as part of the goal of TFI, the Airmen will be fully integrated into the ANG unit.

Kingsley Field has 825 ANG personnel assigned, with 518 working full-time and 307 part-time. This TFI effort has been in the works for the past two years, and leadership is excited to see it flow from the planning phase to execution.

"As the new Airmen start to arrive in early November, we look forward to integrating them into our workforce as seamlessly as possible, with active-duty members working alongside Guardsmen on the same work schedule to achieve a common goal," said Lt. Col. Jeffrey Smith, 173rd Maintenance Group deputy commander. "The increased sortie generation meets the stated F-15 student pilot production requirements, and we're glad Kingsley Field was asked to take on the new challenge."

In addition to an increase in manpower, seven F-15Cs were added to the 173rd FW's inventory. 

"This initiative brought seven extra F-15s to our inventory and we have been maintaining those for a while now without the proper number of personnel," Smith said. "To put it in perspective, the addition of seven jets adds more than 1,200 recurring inspections during a given calendar year, even if those jets aren't being flown. The addition of active-duty maintenance professionals will enable us to settle into a sustainable battle rhythm to include flying, fixing and inspecting the fleet with an increase of 40 sorties per week above what we are currently flying."

In addition to the benefits of increased production, the detachment will allow for a unique learning experience for both active-duty and Guardsmen.

"This is a great opportunity for younger active-duty Airmen to learn from the highly experienced maintainers and instructor pilots here at Kingsley, while at the same time gaining a detailed working knowledge of the differences between Title 10 and Title 32 operations," Clark said. "Those benefits will be realized when the members assigned to Det. 2 move to their next active-duty assignments. On the flip side of the coin, the active-duty Airmen and instructors will bring a fresh set of eyes and very recent experience from active-duty operations to the Airmen at Kingsley."

Throughout the planning stages, leadership at the 173rd FW and Luke AFB have worked closely together to ensure a smooth flow of information, as well as to overcome challenges along the way. 

"Lieutenant colonel Clark has been great to work with as we've tackled initial concerns with respect to receiving and helping his Airmen," Smith said. "Chief Master Sgt. John Craft, 56th Maintenance Group command chief, has been a phenomenal help to us through this process as well, and we appreciate his many years of maintenance expertise, his leadership, and his advocacy for the Airmen of the new detachment here in Klamath Falls."

The local community is also excited to welcome the new Airmen into the Klamath Basin and community leaders and business personnel have been routinely communicating with and working with base leadership to accommodate the new personnel in any way possible. 

"We see this as a win-win-win. The Air Force gains additional student pilot production and valuable experience and training for maintainers on the F-15," Smith said. "Kingsley Field wins by getting to work together with the active-duty staff and personnel on a more routine basis, giving us a chance to compare our organizational structure and processes with those of the active-duty and adopt the parts that make sense locally. Finally, Klamath Falls gets a boost to the local population and economy as about 80 Airmen and their families look for housing, frequent restaurants and join community organizations."

An official assumption-of-command ceremony, presided over by Col. William Bailey, 56th OG commander, will take place in December following the arrival of the first wave of personnel.