22 Air Refueling Wing awarded Safety Office of the Year

Mobility Forum, May/Jun 2003 by Wiley, Moira K

The team at the 22nd Air Refueling Wing Safety Office at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, works diligently every year at safety. Their hard work has paid off with another nod as Air Mobility Command's Safety Office of the Year for 2002; the unit also received the prestigious award in 2000. What's the secret of their success? Teamwork!

"I've been blessed with some really talented people and it has made my job a whole lot easier," said Bernice Padilla, McConnell AFB's Chief of Ground/Weapons Safety. "There's always such a team effort here at McConnell. We all try to help each other out the best that we can in every area and we always work together as a team in the office. If someone is short some people and there's something that we can do, then we do it for them. Even though we may not be an expert in the other person's field, if we know when someone's gone, then we just try to pick up those duties the best we can."

"I think our success can really be attributed to an outstanding team effort," she said, "along with having really good support from our Wing Commander and all of the other commanders here. They all support the safety program very well. We have their backing and we know we can go forward with things that need to be done and we're going to get their okay and their help. That's a big plus and again makes our job so much easier."

The unit's safety focus fully supports all National Defense objectives at home and abroad with 57 KC-135 stratotankers, incorporating active duty, associate reserve and Singaporean detachment crew forces. With a base community consisting of over 10,000 military and civilian personnel and families, "Team McConnell" is dedicated to distinguishing their base as one of the safest in the world. Rated as the best based on their Flight, Ground and Weapons Safety Programs and their rock solid Operational Risk Management (ORM) Program, the unit was successful once again in receiving some well-deserved recognition.

Part of the reason McConnell was nominated for the 2002 Safety Office of the Year award was their outstanding safety record with no Class A flight mishaps the entire year; something they've also managed to accomplish throughout the unit's eight-year history. Padilla believes that teamwork and their ORM program helped them reach this admirable level.

"Again, I think you'd have to look at the very good safety program that exists in all the flying squadrons," Padilla said, concerning their safety record. "We ''. have four flying squadrons here, they all use ORM and I think that this combination of a strong safety program and good flight safety officers who work with the squadrons really contributed to this record. I think all of this, together with how they keep the safety issue flowing all the time, worked to help us attain that."

McConnell's ORM program also made a big impact on their winning AMC's Safety Office of the Year in 2000. The unit has continued to use ORM in every aspect of their operations and they continue to make improvements upon their program each year. The program "gets people to stop and think about what they are doing before they do it, thus avoiding accidents." The proactive program has been implemented so that each person is what the unit's leaders call "ORM oriented," and it affects everything they do.

The unit's personnel are encouraged to use ORM both on and off duty with complete Commander involvement and support of the program. The ORM program was essential in the creation of an in-depth Squadron Commander's Guide to Safety Leadership and ORM; and was the cornerstone of the unit's successful base air show and open house, with an attendance of 120,000. Risk management techniques were used in planning for crowd/traffic flow, parking of vehicles and aircraft and for security measures during the event.

Another program that made an impact, both in the 2000 and 2002, was an OSHA specific program called the Confined Space Program.

"We just completely revamped the Confined Space Program again and brought it up to a much higher standard," said Padilla. "I'm very proud of that. Much of the credit for this outstanding program goes to MSgt Nolan Rayne who is currently assigned to another installation."

This program was specifically cited as part of the reason the unit was nominated for the 2002 award. The Confined Space Program Team not only totally revamped the program, they also implemented structured lesson plans and detailed master entry permits that far exceed the requirements of AFOSH Std 91-25. With 1,418 identified spaces, the program saves lives on every entry.

The team continued its excellent Ground Safety record, completing the year with no Class A on-duty ground mishaps. A 50% reduction in Class C on-duty mishaps, no reportable civilian injuries, an 18% reduction in Class C off-duty mishaps and no reportable Air Force vehicle mishaps with 419 vehicles and over one million miles traveled safely are examples of the unit's stellar year.

In addition to the Confined Space program, there are many other programs the base actively participates in annually, including their seat belt program and DUI prevention, affecting people on and off-duty. Other OSHA specific programs such as the lock out/tag out program deals with anyone working with energized and non-energized electricity and the importance of wearing protective equipment when they should.