USAFE works behind scenes to support Presidential visit

  • Published
  • By Senior Master Sgt. Hollis Dawson
  • 3rd Air Force Public Affairs
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (USAFENS) --  Ensuring the safety of the President of the United States is one of the most important missions a military member can be a part of, and on June 10 more than 800 U.S. Air Forces in Europe Airmen received the opportunity to do just that.

At the request of the Albanian government, a bilateral agreement was established between Albania and the United States to provide air security over Albania during President George W. Bush's historic visit to that country.

In response, USAFE and 3rd Air Force Airmen from various career fields, to include security forces, aerial functions, explosive ordinance disposal, and air traffic control liaisons, worked feverishly behind the scenes to ensure the President's safety.

Planners from the 3rd AF staff, 603rd Air and Space Operations Center, and the 152nd Air Operations Group, a New York based Guard unit, convened to devise the air component plan that guided the entire operation.

"The team coordinated for 26 days with 15 different countries throughout Europe for diplomatic clearances and with interagency units for joint support," said Maj. Gen. Paul Fletcher, 3rd Air Force Vice Commander. "The plan included the use of fighters, tankers, surveillance, cargo and operational support aircraft from various units around the world strategically placed in six different locations."

Specific USAFE aircraft supporting the operation included F-15Cs from the 48th Fighter Wing at Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England; F-16CGs from the 31st Fighter WIng at Aviano AB, Italy; KC-135s from the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall, England; and C-21s and C-130s from the 86 Airlift Wing at Ramstein AB.

Heavily involved in the operation were 603rd AOC Network Intelligence Analyst Staff Sgt. Phillip Stoner, Airman 1st Class Joshua Blaschke and Airman Brad Ziegler. They coordinated with the National Tactical Integration Center to secure timely imagery of various locations as well as provide mission-critical data to the senior intelligence officers within the AOC. Their imagery and intelligence data was provided to commanding officers and Secret Service personnel with the AOC to make timely decisions and ensure mission success.

Sergeant Stoner said all their preparation and behind-the-scenes work was well worth it once they saw CNN's broadcast of the President's plane landing safely on the big screen television within the AOC.

Another key player in the operation was Tech. Sgt. Patrick Browne, the Noncommissioned Officer in Charge of the Intelligence, Weapons and Tactics Center. During the operation, he was the informational conduit between the AOC and the flying units. His unit maintained constant communication between the AOC and all support units.

"It was a lot of responsibility and very rewarding to be involved in such an important and high profile visit," said Sergeant Browne. "It's not everyday you're part of a team protecting the President of the United States. I can't think of any higher priority than that."

At the center of the entire operation was Gen. Tom Hobbins, USAFE Commander, and Brig. Gen. Shpetim Spahiu, Albanian Joint Forces Commander. They joined together within the AOC to lead the massive operation of controlling the skies over Albania.

General Spahiu said it was a great privilege to participate and observe in the operation from within the command and control center at Ramstein. He was most impressed with how well people from different organizations worked together. "All the people were in the right place and gave the right advice for the generals," he said. His U.S. counterpart felt the same.

"The mission was a great success. I'm consistently impressed by the hard work and professionalism routinely displayed by USAFE Airmen. I want to personally thank them for their dedication to the success of this very important mission," said General Hobbins.