Interoperability plays key role in force protection planning

  • Published
  • By Mekka Parish
  • AFCEC Public Affairs
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  The Air Force Civil Engineer Center's emergency management division recently hosted the Air and Space Interoperability Council's Force Protection Working Group, or ASIC/FPWG, annual council meeting.

ASIC is a formal, five-nation military organization with a mandate to enhance coalition warfighting capability through air and space interoperability. The council strives to ensure consistent and effective force protection and emergency management practices between the United States, Australia, Britain, Canada and New Zealand air forces.

The annual meeting provided a forum for idea sharing, education and communication on myriad of challenges facing U.S. and foreign air forces.

"Our mission is to make the air forces work better together and improve interoperability," said Lt. Col. Chris England of the Royal Canadian Air Force, who serves on the ASIC/FPWG management council based out of Washington D.C.

Consistency is especially important for contingency operations, said Mike Connors, emergency management division chief and U.S. co-head of the delegation for ASIC.

"ASIC was established to allow English-speaking NATO counties - United States, Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand - to work together on issues that support interoperability so, when we deploy or work a contingency operation jointly, we have commonalities," Connors said.

The week-long event consisted of three main components. 

The first focused on briefings by each nation that addressed capabilities, organizational changes and challenges within their given air force. 

The second component included demonstrations and first-hand looks at the resources the U.S Air Force has at its disposal.  The 325th Readiness and Emergency Management Flight at Tyndall gave the council a tour of its facilities including the mobile command unit,  and showcased detection equipment and protection gear. The council also had an opportunity to view research and development projects.  In addition, they toured various research labs to gain perspective on the science behind new techniques developed to address needs such as runway repair. 

The third component included updating ASIC policy and guidance documents.   At first blush, some might think such demonstrations and tours were mundane; however, in the larger scope of Air Force protection, the activities were significant, Connors said.

"It shows our ASIC partners our capabilities," he said.  "It shows what we bring to the fight and that sets the stage for us to be able to work those issues."

The annual meetings are great arenas to exchange positive ideas and even negative feedback gathered through all levels of the perspective air forces, said Mike Krause, Austrian Air Force squadron commander.

"This council is the first step in linking into that forum of good ideas, and those ideas are not necessarily coming from the members of the group.  A lot of those ideas come from troops on the ground who are actually doing the work," Krause said.