How to be War, Contingency plans UCI ready

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Adawn Kelsey
  • 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs
SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  To be prepared for the Unit Compliance Inspection in late January, every unit must have plans that are in compliance and up to date.

Jerry Thurman the 82nd Training Wing Plans officer and Mary Smith, 82nd TRW Plans and Programs specialist gave some pointers for the units to become more prepared for the UCI.

"We are trying to prepare Sheppard organizations for the upcoming UCI," Mr. Thurman said. "One place that you can start is by conducting a self inspection that is required each year, using the Plans Staff Assistance Visit or the Self Inspection Checklist in Air Education and Training Command Instruction 10-402 Sheppard Air Force Base Supplement 1, Attachment 24."

He said that plan reviews need to be current, either annual or biennial, as required by the plan and must be documented. Plans that task a unit must be available and current. A Continuity Binder, with 10 tabs has to be complete with all the required documentation. Lastly, the unit key supervisory personnel need to be trained within 60 days of appointment and need to be documented.

Mrs. Smith said that currency and documentation is the key. She said not to expect an inspector to stand around while someone is researching when a plan was reviewed or wait while you dig through E-mails to prove when a key person was appointed.

"Have this information readily available for an inspector's review. If not, the easy course of action for the inspector will be to downgrade your program and move on to the next unit," she said.

The office of primary responsibility should mainly be concerned with plan currency. They are responsible for developing or rewriting plans to ensure that the proper coordination with commanders and tasked agencies.

"The plans are developed ahead of time for emergency or contingency and need to be well thought out to ensure that the proper response gets carried out during incidents," Mr. Thurman said.

He said that the 82nd TRW Plans and Programs Community of Practice or CoP is a valuable resource for commanders and Unit Plans Representatives.

"It is the 'truth source' where you will find the most current plans, plan-related information, tools, training aids, and briefing templates," he said.

Everything a UPR needs to know about plans is in the AETCI 10-402 and AETCI 10-402/SAFB Supplement 1.

"As we emphasize in UPR training, plans and programs personnel are always standing by to answer any questions regarding plans, the plan review process, or what's required to build and maintain a solid plans program," Mrs. Smith said.