Practice patience and understanding

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Joseph Quinn
  • 60th Security Forces Squadron

TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – You may have noticed recently we temporarily closed the North Gate, but perhaps you were unaware of why. 

Modernizing our gates provides additional mitigation for our defenders to protect the base populace from the ever-present threat of gate runners.

The installation schedule is as follows:

North Gate:  Feb. 26 – March 29.

Main Gate:  April 2 – May 2.

Hospital Gate:  June 8 – July 11.

South Gate:  Aug. 16 – Sept. 19.

Your defenders are constantly evaluating our public service, which routinely involves gate access procedures. 

Approximately a year ago, the 60th Security Forces Squadron conducted a continuous process improvement initiative that researched the following, installation gate traffic studies, unit manning, training and staff and flight-level duty schedules. There were several take aways that increased the overall force protection of the installation.

The one item Team Travis was most interested in though, was posting an extra installation entry controller to check IDs in the third inbound lane at the Main Gate during peak traffic hours to facilitate traffic flow.   Our research determined on average it only takes 11 seconds for our entry controllers to properly verify vetting on the ground by observing the vehicle approach, making contact with occupants and scanning the credentials via the Defense Biometric Identification System.

I mention this interesting fact so the next time you are waiting in line to enter the base, you’ll remember the amount of time required for your defenders to assess and grant entry onto our installation.  It’s a short wait to ensure the protection of all. 

Your proud and professional defenders will always do their best to adjust operations to meet mission requirements.  An example of this occurred this past weekend as we adjusted installation access control procedures to meet the mission demands of our brethren in the 349th Air Mobility Wing. 

In order to alleviate a traffic flow delay at the Main Gate on Sunday between 6:15 and 6:45 a.m., 60th SFS and 349th SFS members utilized all three inbound lanes at the Main Gate and we opened up and utilized two inbound lanes at the Hospital Gate, which is usually closed on weekends.  Your defenders remain flexible to meet mission requirements, but we also recommend a staggered approach when making plans for your morning commute, especially during these construction projects.

We appreciate our community’s support in making the installation safe.  We also ask for your continued patience and understanding as you access the base through our gates as we enforce vetting procedures to ensure the base populace is never vulnerable to an unnecessary force protection or safety risk.