Fairchild completes UEI Capstone event

by Airman 1st Class Janelle Patiño
92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

2/26/2014 - FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. -- Team Fairchild, the third base in Air Mobility Command to go through an inspection and the first base of a KC-135 Total Force Integration organization under the new Air Force Inspection System called the Unit Effectiveness Inspection, earned an initial rating of, 'Effective' for both the 92nd and 141st Air Refueling Wings.

A few indications in being an effective base are as follows: requirements are met in all mission areas and are managed in an effective and compliant manner, personnel are proficient, leaders treat Airmen with respect and provide a healthy and safe work environment, Commander's Inspection Program provides the command chain an accurate, adequate and relevant picture of unit performance, etc.

"A rating of 'Effective' means that the base is proficient and mission capable in all areas of being in the Air Force," said Lt. Col. David Parlotz, 92nd Air Refueling Wing Inspector General. "This base shows that we are above the line when it comes to AMC because of having fewer discrepancies and a lot more strengths."

With the new UEI, Fairchild will not have any major inspections until the next one in two years.

"They basically rolled all other minor inspections into this one which makes it important for the base," said Parlotz. "During the two-year cycle, wing and unit commanders along with other personnel are responsible for inspecting their own programs and noting discrepancies in the Management Internal Control Toolset as often as possible."

The inspection basically has two report cards that get graded, which include the base and higher headquarters. It is based on how well the communication, support and relationship is between the two.

"This new system is an effective way of helping us voice out the things we need to AMC leadership on how to improve and support the both the 92nd and 141st ARW to stay mission ready," Parlotz said. "Compared to all other previous inspections, having the ability to show higher headquarters how well we are doing and vice versa is all new."

The UEI is graded in a five-tier scale used to grade every base which goes from ineffective, marginally effective, effective, and highly effective to outstanding. It also consists of four major graded areas such as Managing Resources, Leading People, Improving the Unit and Executing the Mission.

In addition to the inspection, the AMC inspector general also recognized multiple top performers from the base, which includes giving out nine IG coins, four certificates of recognition and six team accolades.

The recipients of the IG coins are: Lt. Col. David Parlotz, 92nd ARW, 1st Lt. Katelyn Smith, 92nd Aerospace Medicine Squadron, Tech. Sgt. Shane Sweeney, 92nd ARW, Staff Sgt. Kyle Eisenbarth, 92nd Logistics Readiness Squadron, Staff Sgt. Jason Markham, 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Staff Sgt. Christopher Moore, 92nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, Staff Sgt. Joshua Pagel, 92nd Maintenance Squadron, Senior Airman Kimberly Carter, 92nd Comptroller Squadron, Senior Airman Jahrod Cyrus, 92nd Comptroller Squadron and Airman 1st Class Eric LaPlante, 92nd Medical Support Squadron.

The recipients of the certificates of recognition are: Maj. Philip Postell, 93rd ARS, Capt. Dana Stockton, 92nd Operations Support Squadron, Capt. John Welch, 92nd ARW, Capt. Matthew Willerick, 92nd Medical Operations Squadron, Tech. Sgt. Noel Hachtel, 92nd Logistics Readiness Squadron, Staff Sgt. Gerson Hernandez, 92nd Force Support Squadron, Staff Sgt. Jason Mayers, 92nd LRS, Senior Airman Jeffrey Watson, 92nd ARS and Ms. Lana Jones, 92nd MDSS.

The teams recognized for their outstanding performance are: 92nd Weather Flight Team, AFSO 21 Alert Force Team, Individual Protective Equipment Team, Inspector General Team, Personnel Redeployment Team, Radio Frequency Transmission Team, and Survival Evasion Resistance and Escape Injury Reduction Program Team.

Col. Brian Newberry, 92nd Air Refueling Wing commander, commended and thanked Fairchild Airmen for their hard work over the past two months in preparation of the inspection.

"The AMC IG Team Chief said it best: 'Great Wing... highly motivated Airmen....' and highlighted 13 strengths across our Wing," Newberry said. " We do have some "significant" write-ups and many minors we will absolutely laser focus on to make our Wing better, but overall we are absolutely effective at answering our nation's call."