490th MS poised for 72-hour alerts

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Thomas Trask
  • 490th Missile Squadron
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. --  Beginning Saturday, missile combat crews in the 490th Missile Squadron will help 20th Air Force transform missile operations. Over the next four months, crewmembers will perform 72-hour alerts in three-person crews. 

Historically, combat crews consisted of two officers, one commander and one deputy commander, who performed 24-hour alert shifts, not including transit time to and from missile alert facilities. Crewmembers in the 10th, 12th and 564th MS will continue to perform alerts on 24-hour rotations. 

The 490th MS, augmented with select crews from the 341st Operations Support Squadron and 341st Operations Group Standardization and Evaluation element, will conduct alerts for 72 hour periods. Crews will consist of two commanders and one deputy commander. Crews will continue to operate the launch control capsule in two-person teams, but individual crewmembers will alternate time between the LCC and the MAF. During the test phase 19 crews, 57 total officers, will participate. 

20th AF Commander, Maj. Gen. Thomas Deppe, suggested the 72-hour alert initiative and directed one squadron at each 20th AF wing to test the program. 20th AF will evaluate the program's progress after three months to determine whether to implement the initiative across all of the missile squadrons. 

Within General Deppe's guidelines, each wing may implement the program as leadership prefers. The 490th MS will simultaneously convert to a three-flight organizational structure, from a previous four flights, to better schedule the longer alert periods. 

"We're transitioning to a three-flight organizational construct too, and that provides us with a lot of flexibility to work through the various issues that will arise," said Lt. Col. David Mason, 490th MS commander. 

The 72-hour alert schedule is built on a 45-day cycle. A benefit of the program is a more predictable schedule for crewmembers. Each 490th MS flight will post on alert together and will eventually schedule training together to meet operations requirements. Crews should expect a maximum of six alert periods in 45 days. Though crewmembers may see an increase in time off alert, crewmembers may also see an increase in work hours during each cycle. 

"The biggest risk that jumps out to everyone is that it's different," said Lt. Col. Scott Fox, 12th MS commander, who participated in the 20th AF initial project team to study the alert changes. "But the security forces members, facility managers and chefs go out for that many more days already." 

Another concern is crewmember down time. 

"People need to know that we're looking [at time off]," Colonel Fox said. "Even up through General Deppe; I heard him personally reinforce it. We need to try as hard as we can to come up with some protected amount of time off." 

"The plan is to have the first 48 hours, after returning from the field, be hands off," Colonel Mason said. 

The program's longer work cycles are also of concern to crewmembers' spouses. Lt. Col. Doug Smith, 490th MS deputy commander, spoke with 10 spouses Sept. 19 to answer questions about the program and help defuse concerns about the program's effect on time spent with families. 

Leadership also identified crewmember proficiency as a potential risk. 

"With two commanders to one deputy, that's a new ratio. We have to adjust our crew force to look like that ratio," said Colonel Fox. "That means some of the deputies are going to upgrade to commander potentially much earlier than they would have under the current construct. That's a risk. Some of them might not be ready at the 12-month point, which is about when we expect the deputy-to-commander transition taking place under the new system." 

Benefits of the plan include decreased driving time, with resultant fuel and vehicle maintenance savings, and increased crewmember interaction with enlisted Airmen. Crews are currently sequestered underground during the 24-hour alert period and have little face-to-face interaction with the teams they command in the missile complex. 

"With the 72-hour alert schedule, at least 12 hours of an alert is going to be spent topside where [crewmembers] can learn leadership," said Col. Sandy Finan, 341st Space Wing commander. "They can start developing leadership skills and interacting with the people they are leading." 

Colonel Mason hopes the trial period will help iron out any bugs and provide enough data and feedback for General Deppe.  

"All the planning is complete; now is the time to execute," said Colonel Mason. "This is a big change that affects the entire Operations Group and the way we conduct business. But I'm optimistic we'll adapt and move forward with the new alert structure if directed to do so after the demonstration period." 

The alert transformation is still being refined and there will likely be a few obstacles to overcome during the program's execution. 

"We've sat down, we've brainstormed, we've thought about it from every angle," said Lt. Col. David Bliesner, 341st Operations Group deputy commander. "There are going to be things that pop up and are consequences we didn't foresee. We're going to have to adjust to them on the fly." 

"The entire Air Force is changing," Colonel Finan said. "We've done 24-hour alerts for a very, very long time. We are creating history here and we want to be the ones who lead that change."