Help desk service to change, move to USAFE

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Sarah Gregory
  • 31st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
AVIANO AIR BASE, Italy --  Change is coming to Aviano. It’s a small change and may not be immediately noticeable to computer users, but the first time someone has a computer problem and they reach for the phone, it becomes noticeable.

It’s not cause for wide-spread panic, but the Aviano help desk service will be eliminated in mid-April.

“The help desk as the base knows it is going away,” said Tech. Sgt. Allen Churchill, 31st Communications Squadron NCO in charge of the help desk. “The service will be picked up by the U.S. Air Forces in Europe consolidated help desk service.”

The consolidation of USAFE help desks is designed to streamline the computer diagnosis and repair process by providing one place for all of USAFE to call with problems.

“The USAFE Consolidated Help Desk will provide 24/7 standardized customer support throughout the entire command,” said Capt. Tiffany Ferrell, 31st CS chief of the network control center. “The CHD initiative falls in step with similar consolidation efforts across the Air Force to provide the most efficient and cost-effective processes to satisfy customer requests. These exciting times are just the beginning stages of a new way of conducting business across the Air Force.”

As the second USAFE base to come on board with the new consolidated system, client server administrators will have to be brought up to date with how the changes will affect them and their customers.

“The new system will be better for Aviano computer users, because people can call the help desk themselves instead of going through their client server administrator like they are required to do now,” Sergeant Churchill said. “It will be the ‘one-stop shop’ for all computer problems.”

Beginning April 17, a three-week phasing schedule will be implemented to switch customers over to the new integrated system. The first two weeks is for Aviano support units and the last week will convert the rest of the main units here.

“For many of the daily operators, the new call center shouldn’t be a problem,” said Sergeant Churchill. “It might be hard for the larger computer system users at first because the USAFE help desk members don’t know the Aviano specifics. It will be a growing process.”

While the disbanding of the Aviano help desk should make getting computer problems fixed quicker and easier, it also has the added benefit of making life easier for the 31st CS help desk members.

“This will help us because we won’t have to be at 24-hour manning and people will be able to have holiday time off,” Sergeant Churchill said. “It will definitely improve shop morale.”

Beginning in mid-April, the new USAFE consolidated help desk can be reached at DSN 480-1777.