Retrospective: Sabers accomplished much in 2006

  • Published
  • By By Senior Airman Eydie Sakura
  • 52nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office
The 52nd Fighter Wing met wing mission goals in-garrison as well as remained vigilant in support of contingencies over the past year.

In 2006, Sabers tackled deployments, exercises and hosted large-scale events, all the while being constantly ready to project superior combat power.

In the first part of the year, the Secretary of the Air Force, Michael Wynne, visited Team Eifel, and the emergency room at the Bitburg Annex hospital opened its door after much needed face lift. The 23rd Fighter Squadron flew NATO missions over the Baltics; the 52nd Logistics Readiness Squadron opened up the new transportation training center; and the command post was remodeled from a Cold War relic to a state-of-the-art facility housing the wing operations center and maintenance operations center. The 81st Fighter Squadron attended Air Warrior training in Las Vegas, as well as Red Flag the following month.

In the spring, it was announced that Saber excellence earned the wing the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, and hundreds of active-duty members from across the wing deployed in support of Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom. In May, the 726th Air Mobility Squadron reached its 1,000 mission milestone, just six months after saying, "good-bye" to their old home at Rhein-Main Air Base, Germany.

The wing welcomed a new commander and his family in June, and Sabers opened their doors to the local community at the 2006 Spangdahlem Air Base Open House July 1 -- the first time in eight years such an event was hosted by the base.

"The open house was super," said Bruno Kranz, who brought his young son to the open house from their home in Mellich. "I see (the planes) every day but this is great for people who don't know what happens on the base."

Approximately 10,000 visitors from across Europe and beyond came to the open house to view 20 aircraft on display and experience everything from explosive ordnance disposal demonstrations to trying on individual protective equipment designed to protect the wearer from nuclear, biological, chemical and conventional hazards.

During the summer, Sabers celebrated living in "the center of the universe" by participating in the second annual Explore the Eifel, a week where people were granted two two-day passes to travel throughout Germany's Eifel region and immerse themselves in the culture.

In August, the 22nd Fighter Squadron traveled to Romania, where their mission was to forge ties with the Romanian air force and train with MiG-21 Lancers. It was also announced that the hospital will transform to a clinic in the summer of 2007 -- and the 52nd Mission Support Squadron introduced the Airman and Family Readiness Center and their new two-day reintegration program.

An F-16 Fighting Falcon crashed near Oberkail, just three miles from base Sept. 14. The pilot could not resolve landing gear problems and had to bail out of the fighter and crash land his jet.

Also during September, members of the 52nd MDG and U.S. Air Forces in Europe medical professionals traveled to Ghana, Africa, provide aid to thousands of Ghanaians. The wing welcomed a new command chief master sergeant and the Department of Defense Schools celebrated their 60th anniversary.

The year concluded with a Phase II exercise, preparing Sabers for the upcoming 2007 NATO Operation Evaluation in June, and the 52nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, and the 22nd and 23rd Fighter Squadrons joined fellow Airmen from around the globe serving in allied nations' air forces to ensure the success of a NATO summit in Riga, Latvia.

Congratulations to all the groups and geographically-separated units on their accomplishments throughout the year. Some of the wing's highlights were:

52nd Operations Group
* 22nd FS: Participated in Steadfast Jaguar at Cape Verde, Africa, in June, as well as Cope Thunder in Alaska during October.

* 23rd FS: Flew training missions at Red Flag in Las Vegas in February; experienced an AEF rotation to Al Udied in late summer; and exercised with Turkish counterparts during Anatolian Eagle in Turkey in November.

* 81st FS: Flew missions during an AEF cycle to Bagram, Afghanistan.
s 606th ACS: Supported AEF cycles in Kandahar February through September; participated in the Riga POTUS Support in Latvia and the Air Control University at the Bitburg Flugplatz in November.

52nd Medical Group
* Deployed a four-member Mobile Field Surgical Team in support of Joint Task Force Lebanon, and filled the Joint Task Force Lebanon commander's executive officer position with one of the 52nd MDG's nurses. The groups' rapid response capability enabled them to fill the position from notification to boots on the ground in less than 30 hours.

* Six enlisted members performed third country national escort duty. Medical Group personnel stood side-by-side with their line counterparts ensuring the safety of downrange locations.

* Provided medical support for two space shuttle launches, and sent members downrange with the Army to provide medical train in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

* Deployed 63 members in support of 16 missions.

52nd Mission Support Group
* Cut the ribbon on the Wilkommen Center -- the facility is a welcoming center for newcomers designed to teach Sabers about the history of he Eifel, German culture and introduce them to basic German words.

* DoDDS and the 52nd FW partner for student success through the Commanders' Honor Roll program, designed to recognize students and parents for academic achievement and growth.

* Fiscal Year 2006 close-out garners Sabers $4.7 million to improve the lives of Airmen at work and in the community.

52nd Maintenance Group
* Supplied maintenance support to Red Flag in Nevada, the NATO Tactical Leadership Program in Belgium, Exercise Brilliant Arrow, and the 52nd FW AIM-9 Sidewinder Live Shoot.

* Honored a fallen comrade at the Lt. Sovern memorial flyby in Luxembourg; the Saint-Avold Cemetery in France and eight Memorial Day flybys in three different countries.
s Attended the Berlin Air Show in May; provided support during OEF and OIF; participated in Exercise Steadfast Jaguar; and acted as the National Airborne Operations Center Support.

38th Munitions Maintenance Group
* Four squadrons achieved a Satisfactory, the highest possible rating, during USAFE Nuclear Surety Inspections -- the first time in more than 10 years.

* Achieved an Excellent rating on its USAFE Unit Compliance Inspection, and accomplished 167 separate readiness training exercises.

* Awarded two Leo Marquez Awards, command post controller of the year, Hennessy Award for Small Unit Dining Facility and was the runner up for the Blue Pencil Award for their newsletter.

726th Air Mobility Squadron
* Executed an unprecedented light-switch transition for $178 million Air Mobility Command operations stand up at the wing.

* Moved record tons of cargo as main European OIF sustainment hub while directing transition to Incirlik Air Base, Turkey.

* Secured $300,000 mechanized material handling system for new warehouse.