Alaska Air Guardsmen wrap up work in Australia: Thirty-four citizen-Airmen return from bui

Alaska Air Guardsmen wrap up work in Australia: Thirty-four citizen-Airmen return from building a radar facility in remote Western Australia

By Capt. John Callahan, 176 WG/PA / Published June 06, 2014

PHOTO DETAILS / DOWNLOAD HI-RES 1 of 5

H.E. HOLT NAVAL COMMUNICATION STATION, Australia – Senior Master Sgt. Anthony Liberty, structures superintendent for the Alaska Air National Guard’s 176th Civil Engineer Squadron, smooths freshly poured concrete for an oil-containment wall here May 14, 2014. Thirty-four Alaska Air Guard members, most from the 176th CES, deployed for three weeks to this tiny outpost in Western Australia to help build a space radar facility to be jointly operated by Australia and the United States. National Guard photo by Capt. John Callahan.

PHOTO DETAILS / DOWNLOAD HI-RES 2 of 5

HOLT NAVAL COMMUNICATION STATION, Australia -- Tech. Sgt. Abigail Olivares, a utilities and fuels technician with the Alaska Air National Guard's 176th Civil Engineer Squadron, brazes copper pipe here May 19, 2014 as part of a construction project at this remote outpost in Western Australia. Olivares was among thirty-four members of the Alaska Air National Guard who deployed here for two weeks to prepare the site to receive a space-radar antenna. National Guard photo by Capt. John Callahan.

PHOTO DETAILS / DOWNLOAD HI-RES 3 of 5

HAROLD E. HOLT NAVAL COMMUNICATION STATION, Australia -- Tech Sgt. Mark Smith, structures supervisor for the Alaska Air National Guard's 176th Civil Engineering Squadron, demonstrates welding techniques to two junior Airmen here May 6, 2014. The three were among 34 Guard members deployed here for three weeks to prepare the site to receive a space radar antenna being relocated from the Caribbean Island of Antigua. National Guard photo by Capt. John Callahan

PHOTO DETAILS / DOWNLOAD HI-RES 4 of 5

HOLT NAVAL COMMUNICATION STATION, Australia -- Master Sgt. Bryan Spake (left), operations manager for the Alaska Air National Guard's 176th Civil Engineer Squadron, and Senior Master Sgt. Scott Belyea, the squadron's structures flight chief, maneuver a steel girder into place here May 12, 2014. The pair were among 34 Alaska Air National Guard members who deployed for three weeks to this remote base in Western Australia to prepare it to receive a space radar antenna. National Guard photo by Capt. John Callahan.

PHOTO DETAILS / DOWNLOAD HI-RES 5 of 5

HOLT NAVAL COMMUNICATION STATION, Australia --Tech. Sgt. Dee Thomas, unit training manager for the Alaska Air National Guard's 176th Civil Engineer Squadron, and Senior Airman Aaron Brehm, a carpenter with the squadron, paint the side of the radar facility here May 13, 2014. The pair were among 34 Alaska Air National Guard members who deployed for three weeks to this remote base in Western Australia to prepare it to receive a space radar antenna. National Guard photo by Capt. John Callahan.

H.E. HOLT NAVAL COMMUNICATION STATION, Australia -- Thirty-four members of the Alaska Air National Guard's 176 Wing wrapped up three weeks' worth of work today at this remote military base in Western Australia.

Thirty-one of the 34 deployers were from the wing's 176 Civil Engineer Squadron, with the few support personnel making up the remainder.

"The deployment went very much as we'd hoped," said Lt. Col. Jack Evans, the squadron's commander. "We poured concrete, installed lighting, painted, installed new power circuits and ventilations systems - you name it. It's not easy to get this level of intense, focused training back home."

To maintain a state of readiness, Guard members are required to regularly practice their skills. These types of short, volunteer deployments - called DFTs, or Deployments for Training -- allow the guard members to sharpen those skills while accomplishing real-world work.

In this case, that work involved preparing a building here to receive a space radar antenna which the U.S. Air Force's Space Command is in the process of moving from the Caribbean island of Antigua. Once completed, it will operate under the auspices of Space Command under a joint agreement with the Australian Department of Defense. The radar will be able to accurately track up to 200 objects a day, from satellites and space launches in Asia to "space junk" dropped by astronauts during space walks.

Space Command officials expressed appreciation for the Guard members' effort and results.

"These guys came to work focused and prepared every day," said Air Force Capt. Nathan Smith, the officer overseeing the project. "Right away it was obvious the level of skill they brought to bear. Many of their senior noncommissioned officers are, outside the Guard, professionals in their chosen fields, and it really showed. It was a pleasure watching them mentor the young guys and move the project along."

To save money and provide military personnel with much-needed training, the project for the last 10 months has brought in rotating teams of Air National Guard civil engineer squadrons to do much of the work. The Alaska Air Guardsmen comprise the seventh of eight planned rotations. This approach is expected to help save $20-$30 million off the project's original $70 million cost.

If you wish to comment, use the text box below. AF reserves the right to modify this policy at any time.

This is a moderated forum. That means all comments will be reviewed before posting. In addition, we expect that participants will treat each other, as well as our agency and our employees, with respect. We will not post comments that contain abusive or vulgar language, spam, hate speech, personal attacks, violate EEO policy, are offensive to other or similar content. We will not post comments that are spam, are clearly "off topic", promote services or products, infringe copyright protected material, or contain any links that don't contribute to the discussion. Comments that make unsupported accusations will also not be posted. The AF and the AF alone will make a determination as to which comments will be posted. Any references to commercial entities, products, services, or other non-governmental organizations or individuals that remain on the site are provided solely for the information of individuals using this page. These references are not intended to reflect the opinion of the AF, DoD, the United States, or its officers or employees concerning the significance, priority, or importance to be given the referenced entity, product, service, or organization. Such references are not an official or personal endorsement of any product, person, or service, and may not be quoted or reproduced for the purpose of stating or implying AF endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service.

Any comments that report criminal activity including: suicidal behaviour or sexual assault will be reported to appropriate authorities including OSI. This forum is not:

This forum is not to be used to report criminal activity. If you have information for law enforcement, please contact OSI or your local police agency.
Do not submit unsolicited proposals, or other business ideas or inquiries to this forum. This site is not to be used for contracting or commercial business.
This forum may not be used for the submission of any claim, demand, informal or formal complaint, or any other form of legal and/or administrative notice or process, or for the exhaustion of any legal and/or administrative remedy.

AF does not guarantee or warrant that any information posted by individuals on this forum is correct, and disclaims any liability for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on any such information. AF may not be able to verify, does not warrant or guarantee, and assumes no liability for anything posted on this website by any other person. AF does not endorse, support or otherwise promote any private or commercial entity or the information, products or services contained on those websites that may be reached through links on our website.

Members of the media are asked to send questions to the public affairs through their normal channels and to refrain from submitting questions here as comments. Reporter questions will not be posted. We recognize that the Web is a 24/7 medium, and your comments are welcome at any time. However, given the need to manage federal resources, moderating and posting of comments will occur during regular business hours Monday through Friday. Comments submitted after hours or on weekends will be read and posted as early as possible; in most cases, this means the next business day.

For the benefit of robust discussion, we ask that comments remain "on-topic." This means that comments will be posted only as it relates to the topic that is being discussed within the blog post. The views expressed on the site by non-federal commentators do not necessarily reflect the official views of the AF or the Federal Government.

To protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personally identifiable information, such as name, Social Security number, DoD ID number, OSI Case number, phone numbers or email addresses in the body of your comment. If you do voluntarily include personally identifiable information in your comment, such as your name, that comment may or may not be posted on the page. If your comment is posted, your name will not be redacted or removed. In no circumstances will comments be posted that contain Social Security numbers, DoD ID numbers, OSI case numbers, addresses, email address or phone numbers. The default for the posting of comments is "anonymous", but if you opt not to, any information, including your login name, may be displayed on our site.

Thank you for taking the time to read this comment policy. We encourage your participation in our discussion and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.