31st annual WEPTAC conference

by Lt. Col. Christine Rhodes
162nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs

10/18/2012 - 10/18/2012 - TUCSON, Az -- Warfighters from throughout the U.S. will be gathering for the 31st annual Weapons and Tactics conference Oct. 22-26 here at the Tucson International Airport, home of the conference hosts Air National Guard Air Force Reserve Command Test Center, the 162nd Fighter Wing, and the 355th Fighter Wing.

This year's theme is "Persistent Conflict - Enabling the Warfighter" as the focus will be on the rapidly expanding missions of the Air Reserve Component and its warfighters.

During the week-long conference, more than 600 ARC members will assemble for the event to attend briefings and discussions throughout the base. There will be 27 different working groups with specific breakouts to discuss the tactical development and modernization planning for the future of their respective airframes.

The conference will conclude with an executive meeting and out brief of their findings to Lt. Gen. Harry M. Wyatt III, the director of the Air National Guard, and Lt. Gen. James Jackson, the commander of the Air Force Reserve.

"The major benefit of WEPTAC is that it defines the warfighters requirements from a bottom up perspective bringing in weapons officers and tacticians from across the ARC," said Col. Richard Dennee, the Air National Guard Air Force Reserve Command Test Center commander. "They spend three days discussing what their needs are from a warfighter view to help them do their job better down the road."

Previous WEPTAC conferences have produced positive results for the future based off of input from the conference, field representatives, Major Command staffs, System Program Offices, and industry.

"We take those requirements and test them to make them a reality in the future," said Dennee. "These results are seen anywhere from six months to a couple years after the conference."

The WEPTAC conference is a chance for 162nd FW members to interact with other warfighters also engaged in current operations. This allows the wing to share its mission, weapons and tactics knowledge with other important players within the ANG operational loop.

"The 162nd Fighter Wing benefits from this process because of their 59 maintainers who support the [Air National Guard Air Force Reserve Command Test Center] mission," said Dennee. "They provide a direct daily support that helps the war effort. The wing's pilots are sometimes asked to fly with [Air National Guard Air Force Reserve Command Test Center] to support testing missions along with A-10 pilots from the 355th Fighter Wing at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base."

"We appreciate the teamwork and partnership with [the Air National Guard Air Force Reserve Command Test Center], the National Guard Bureau, ARC and all who which support our critical mission," said Col. Michael T. McGuire, the 162nd FW commander.