2006 WVNG Annual Report PDF - West Virginia Army National Guard

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West Virginia National Guard Annual Report 2006February was a bittersweet month for the 167th AW as unit members bid farewell tothe last three C-130 Hercules aircraft, which were headed to their new home in Charleston. Aceremony was held at the167th AW with West Virginia'stwo senators, Robert C. Byrdand Jay Rockefeller along withMaj. Gen. Allen Tackett boardinga 167th AW aircraft for itsfinal flight to Charleston.When the last three C130sarrived in Charleston, ColonelVollmecke presented hiscounterpart, 130th Airlift WingCommander Tim Frye, with aceremonial key to the aircraft.The presentation signified atransition essentially madepossible by the unified effortsof the state's congressional delegation and West National Guard Adjutant General AllenTackett to stave off the Pentagon's recommended removal of C-130s already based inCharleston. For more than 33 years 167 th AW planes have flown humanitarian support forevery hurricane relief effort while participating in many military operations all over the world.In April, the Wing began the full-time hiringprocess for the C-5 conversion by bringing on 13maintenance personnel who would be among the firstmaintainers to be trained on the new aircraft. In May,these new hires, along with those already in place,formed a team of over 50 unit members who went toDover and Travis Air Force Bases to attend traininggiven by Field Training Detachments (FTD) at thoseunits. Also at this time, the Wing received a planningdocument and authority to use this document for hiringpurposes.The WV CERF-P team, which is composed of167th AW members and other Guard members fromaround the state, represented the West Virginia Guardin Operation Vital Guardian in Washington, D.C. in ademonstration of the nation's best emergency responseteams. CERF-P, or Chemical, Biological,Radiological, Nuclear or High Yield Explosive Enhanced Response Force Package wasestablished to assist local first responders in the event of terrorist incidents, weapons of massdestruction attacks, or natural disasters.20
West Virginia National Guard Annual Report 2006In May the 167th AW held a job fair at the base that was open to the public. This fairwas intended to generate interest among the public regarding the upcoming full-time hires.Approximately 50 people attended along with several members of the media. On the sameday, the Wing also hosted a Center of Influence meeting with key members of the local community.The focus of this meeting was to reach out to minority groups within the local area sothat they could see opportunities with WV Air National Guard. Both events received extensivemedia attention.Also in May, full-time hiring began inearnest. Job advertisements went out onbase for new supervisory positions, andadvertisements for the remaining positionswere distributed nationwide.When Lieutenant General Blum requested6,000 volunteers for OperationJump Start (OJS) in July, LieutenantColonel Chris Walker from the 167th AWresponded. He volunteered and wasselected to head the Air National GuardCrisis Action Team responsible fordirecting the ANG's portion of OJS. Col.Dave Porter also volunteered and headed up the OJS clinic in New Mexico for one month.Additionally, over 30 members of the unit have served in OJS since its inception.Senator Robert C. Byrd visited the 167th AW in August to dedicate the runway and tourconstruction under way at the base. Byrd praised members of the Wing for answering the callto duty, whether at home or abroad. He said the Wing "never lets us down." Byrd praisedWing members for their past performance and expressed his confidence that they would besuccessful with the new C-5 mission.Throughout the year, several events occurred concerning the 167th AW country partnershipwith Peru. Col. Vollmecke traveled to Peru in July to meet with the Peruvian military, andhe and Col Gain went back to Peru in September to meet again with the Peruvian military anddiscuss future partnership efforts. In August, two Peruvian Air Force officers assigned to theAmerican Embassy visited the base for a tour of facilities and information exchange.In October, at the beginning of the new federal Fiscal Year, the Wing received fundingfor all full-time positions.Early in the year, leaders in the Air Force Logistics community published plans toregionalize C-5 Isochronal Inspections (ISO) in an effort to reduce cost and increase aircraftavailability to the warfighter. Wings selected to perform this task would receive additionalmanpower, while units not selected would likely lose manpower. An advance team of ActiveDuty, Guard and Reserve personnel came to the 167th in June to do a preliminary assessmentof the Wing’s ability to perform regional inspections. In October, a follow up team met withMGTackett and the 167th AW commanders at Martinsburg to discuss the C-5 Regional ISOProposal.21
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Captain Jason Bollinger167th Airlif
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2006 WVNG Annual Report PDF - West Virginia Army National Guard

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