USAFE Command Center earns 'ACESes' for inspection Published July 17, 2006 By USAFENEWS USAFE Public Affairs RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany -- The USAFE Command Center here earned outstanding results for their performance in the 2006 Joint Chiefs of Staff Assessment inspection. To commemorate this milestone and thank the team for its stellar performance, Gen. Tom Hobbins recently presented the COMUSAFE Airmen Committed to Excellence award to members of the Command Center. The award - known as the ‘ACE' award - is presented by COMUSAFE to recognize Airmen for their hard work and dedication to the Air Force mission, and is given in addition to formal recognition programs. Earning an ACE in their respective operations and training positions were: Maj. Charles Gutierrez, Capt. Jason LeBlanc, 1st Lt. Katie Serrano, Master Sgt. Chris "Griz" Fleishman, Tech. Sgt. Stephanie Barnosky, Tech. Sgt. Matt Thomas and Staff Sgt. Michelle Belles. Although each member of the command center's 32-person team participated in the inspection, this smaller group went above and beyond when they were personally evaluated by a four-member field grade officer inspection group in a variety of areas, said the chief of the command center, Lt. Col. Bruce VanRemortel. The areas evaluated included a warfighting scenario involving USEUCOM and JCS, a full inspection of the training and evaluation program, a complete records review and an inspection of the Personnel Reliability Program. "Although new this year - and not officially a pass/fail area - crew testing is an important facet any inspection process," said Colonel VanRemortel. "The command center achieved an excellent overall score of 98 percent for the closed book examination!" "I was blown away by the teamwork!" he said. "This is the equivalent of an Operational Readiness Inspection, so everything is on the line each year. Our folks went into final preparation mode following New Year's Day and have really buckled down to earn these outstanding results. I couldn't be more proud of them."