Combating the Cold: Snow Patrol priority list ensures mission success first

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Austin M. May
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
RAF MILDENHALL, England --  For more than three decades, RAF Mildenhall has annually averaged about one day of heavy snow, and fewer than six days with enough snowfall to accumulate on the ground.

But when the conditions are right and the ground becomes blanketed by fresh powder, trained professionals implement well-established plans, and the mission carries right on through.

When the 100th Operations Support Squadron Weather Flight determines it could snow on the base, they alert the 100th Civil Engineer Squadron's Snow Patrol. The team goes into standby mode, ready to deploy its fleet of vehicles and personnel at a moment's notice.

According to lead snow patrol coordinator Tech. Sgt. Daniel Smith, utilizing plows, snow brooms, chemical sprayers for deicing aircraft and salt spreaders, the team assaults the snow in priority areas identified in the 100th Air Refueling Wing's Snow and Ice Control Plan.

"Base Ops has priority on which areas need clearing, because they know where aircraft will be moving and parked, but after that we stick to the priority list," he said. The list specifies which areas of the airfield and base roads must be cleared first when snow begins to pile up. The runways and taxiways come before anything else.

The 100th Civil Engineer Squadron keeps 10 people permanently assigned to the snow team, five for day shift and five for night, as well as about 30 augmentees divided between the two shifts.
"We have to make sure the airfield stays open," Sergeant Smith said. "We don't want to miss a single sortie."

The sergeant said the team spends most of its time clearing the airfield when the snow gets heavy, which can be maddeningly frustrating.

"Only God controls the weather," he said. "Sometimes we'll get it clear just to turn around and start over, and sometimes we'll finish right as the sun comes out and melts everything."

Clearing the snow is non-stop, demanding work with long hours, Sergeant Smith said, but it's a team effort, and the entire team always gives 100 percent to the task.

Because the airfield has to take priority in terms of snow removal, the base roads sometimes accumulate more powder than is safe to drive on before the plows can reach them. When that happens, measures are usually already in motion to keep the base population safe while moving around.

According to Senior Airman Brockley Cassidy, 100th Security Forces Squadron, whenever snow is falling the Defenders are keeping close eyes on driving conditions, and implement warning systems when necessary.

During snowfalls, 100th SFS patrols report conditions about every two hours. Based on their recommendations, the road conditions meter can be adjusted to let drivers know how bad it actually is. For example, Airman Brockley said road conditions can be changed from yellow to red when a vehicle can't travel more than 5 to 10 miles per hour without losing traction.

Once Security Forces makes the recommendation to change the road conditions, the RAF Mildenhall Command Post pushes the information to specific agencies so they can alert their members. The information can be seen on the base Web site, http://www.mildenhall.af.mil within minutes of the change.

As rarely as it happens, when the winter sky opens and the English rain is replaced by snow, the 100th ARW Snow and Ice Plan snaps into action, making sure flurries don't stop the fuel from flying.