LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Virginia –
After months of preparation, the 480th Intelligence Wing completed the Langley Air Force Base portion of its Unit Compliance Inspection with an overall 97 percent in-compliance rating and no unit findings.
The Air Combat Command Knights Inspection Team, out of Lackland AFB, Texas, arrived here Feb. 25, and the inspection ran through March 3. In all, the team inspected 166 critical compliance objectives, with 128 of the objectives in-compliance, 33 in-compliance with comments and only five not in compliance ratings. Additionally, the wing had 34 superior performers, eight superior performance teams and four best practices. The wing also has units at Beale AFB, Calif., and at Offutt AFB, Neb., but those units undergo independent inspections.
“Wing staff has excellent oversight of key programs,” said Col. Paul Laugesen, the inspection team chief. “In support functions, inspectors were extremely impressed with the visual information program. The 10th Intelligence Squadron has an exceptional performance report tracking system and several inspectors lauded the operations program managers.”
This was the 480th IW’s first inspection since becoming a wing in December 2003. Therefore, there were several challenges involved in preparing for the inspection – for inspectors and wing members alike.
The first stage in an inspection is planning, Colonel Laugesen explained. Usually team members look at the last inspection and use it as a guide.
“We had to start from scratch. We had to plan differently,” he said. “Plus being a new wing with 166 critical compliance objectives, that is a large number for a tenant unit. It is a lot to inspect for the first time.”
Another area presenting a challenge was the Sentinal AN/GSQ-272 Distributed Ground System under the wing construct.
The Distributed Ground Systems provide intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance “reachback” capabilities for deployed warfighting commanders. The 480th IW’s Airmen monitor intelligence data feeds from deployed locations, interpreting them and providing feedback to the warfighters in theater from trailers at Langley AFB. All this happens in real or near real time. They process information gathered by U-2 RQ/MQ-1 Predators, Global Hawks and other intelligence platforms.
The DGS weapons system continues to mature. As a result the inspection process must mature, Colonel Laugesen said. A year ago ACC did not have instructions governing the system.
The 480th IW worked with ACC to develop instructions for DGS operations, training and standards and evaluations. In turn, these were used to write wing instructions and define inspection guidelines. All this was done over the last year.
“As the Air Force’s lead wing for Distributed Common Ground Systems, the 480th IW teamed very effectively with ACC intelligence and ACC IG to help develop ACC directives and inspection criteria for all DGS units. Then they had to develop their own unit instructions based on this very recent ACC guidance. These are pioneering efforts by a young wing in the maturity of a new kind of weapon system.”
Lt. Col. Randall Kersey, chief of inspections for the team, said the team realized it could face similar challenges in developing criteria for an Operational Readiness Inspection for a DGS unit. The UCI provided a unique opportunity for the inspectors to partner with the wing and discuss how to proceed in ORI criteria.
“While everyone was in the inspection mode, we exchanged ideas on how we can create tasks to evaluate,” Colonel Kersey said.
Overall, Colonel Laugesen said the team was impressed with the strong sense of teamwork and pride throughout the wing.
Col. Judy Chizek, the 480th IW commander, gave the credit to the people in the wing.
“The people throughout the wing did all the work. They worked through all the nitty gritty details to get us to this superb level of compliance. My thanks to them and our host, the 1st Fighter Wing,” she said. “The inspectors were impressed with the close working relationship we have with our 1st FW hosts. We get great support from all areas of the 1st FW, and the UCI validated that.”