Florida Reservists prove they are mission ready under new inspection process

  • Published
  • By Maj. Cathleen Snow
  • 920th Rescue Wing Public Affairs
PATRICK AIR FORCE BASE, Fla --  Airmen from the 920th Rescue Wing, Patrick Air Force Base, Florida, are used to living on the edge. Speeding to injured troops serving on the front lines and providing critical life-saving care is their mission. However, to get through the new inspection process, conducted here April 24 - 26, wing Airmen adopted the phrase "Keep Calm and Rescue On."

"Right after our 2013 ORI (Operational Readiness Inspection), the Air Force revised how inspections are accomplished," said Wing Commander Col. Jeffrey Macrander, who has been leading the 920th since September of 2011. "It placed the main focus on mission readiness and compliance at the wing commander level."

Known as a Capstone, it is now a Commander's Inspection Program (CCIP), and it's led internally by a Wing Inspection Team (WIT).

The 4 major graded areas are:
Executing the Mission - can we fly, fight and win?
Managing resources - can we account for our equipment and resources?
Improving the unit - do we collect and act on key data?
Leading the people - are people trained, developed and empowered?

According to inspectors, the Air Force Inspection System (AFIS) requires a complete mindset shift in how Airmen think about inspections.

"With the new inspection process more time will be available for training and mission readiness rather than inspection preparation," said Lt. Col. Stuart Rhoades, chief, Inspection Analysis Branch, Headquarters Air Force Reserve Command, Inspector General of Inspections. "'Mission Ready' is 'Inspection Ready', and it will allow an opportunity to showcase program strengths"

"We are going from one inspection every 5 to 6 years to a constant look," said Maj. Nick Philpitt, 920th RQW IGI, who manages the inspection process within the wing. "Airmen can improve their work center and let the wing shine all of the time.  It is a new process but they should embrace it because we can shape the program to be a benchmark for other Reserve units to follow," said Philpitt.

According to the AFIS web site, there are five grading tiers for the new program starting with the highest rating of outstanding, then highly effective, effective, marginally effective and ineffective being the lowest.

For a unit to receive a rating of "effective," all requirements in all mission areas must be met: leaders must treat Airmen with respect and provide a healthy and safe work environment; continuous self-improvement efforts must be made; and critical programs and processes must be measured with few significant deficiencies noted.   

Ultimately, the wing kept calm, rescued on, and received an overall "Effective" rating by the 40-member AFRC Inspector General team.

"It's all about capturing and documenting the things the Wing is already doing-being mission ready at all times," said Macrander.

"I felt really confident going into the inspections-mainly because we do everything the same whether the inspectors are here or not," said Tech. Sgt. Jeffrey Cope, HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter crew chief, 920th Air Maintenance Squadron.

While the formal capstone inspection is complete, the local IG team emphasizes that this new system is a continuous process and validation happens every two years.

Under the new AFIS, "mission ready is inspection ready".  It's a continuous process to keep our Rescue Airmen trained to save lives in combat and peacetime, said the Wing Commander.