Wingman preparedness

  • Published
  • By Col. Mark Dillon
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing commander
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Wingman look after each other and are prepared! The wingman philosophy -- protecting someone by "watching their back" -- is synonymous with our profession and heritage. 

World War II and Korean War ace Col. Francis Gabreski, USAF retired, captured the wingman's importance when he said, "The wingman is absolutely indispensable. I look after the wingman. The wingman looks after me. It's another set of eyes protecting you." 

To carry on that wingman tradition we must keep our eyes on each other and use our programs, training and resources in order to stay ready. This week's base-wide preparedness day gives all of Team Travis another opportunity to be great wingmen. 

By staying ready and applying our wingman culture, lives are saved, resources are safeguarded and operational capability is preserved during a natural or manmade disaster. By keeping our eyes on each other and by taking advantage of preparedness day Team Travis will be ready ... ready to help our families, ready to help our neighbors and ready to execute our mission. 

But our wingman culture demands vigilance every day. Another way Team Travis wingmen remain vigilant is with our Voluntary Protection Program. Safety-conscious wingmen across the installation have submitted an amazing 80 hazard reports since the beginning of the calendar year -- an incredible increase of 1,600 percent over last year! 

These hazards are being identified and submitted via the installation's SharePoint VPP button and blog site. Each day Team Travis wingmen improve the safety and well-being of the base populace. They also make responsible choices. Travis Airmen Against Drunk Driving volunteers are credited with 184 assists in the past four months. These and dozens of proactive actions exemplify Team Travis' culture -- a prepared wingman culture -- every day. 

Everyone agrees these are challenging and demanding times. By being prepared, by being good wingmen, each one of us, our families, our units will be ready to execute our worldwide mission. Yes, these are tough times but I can think of no finer group of Americans to overcome these challenges than Americas Airmen. Team Travis thank you for serving this great nation.