80th opens new air operations complex

  • Published
  • By Bill Thornton
  • 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs
SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  History was written Monday when Col. Jeffrey Kendall and base and local dignitaries cut the ribbon at a ceremony marking the official opening of Sheppard's new Airfield Operations Complex. 

The $20 million facility will be home to all air traffic control services, airfield management, base weather observers, transient alert and the command section for the 80th Operation Support Squadron. As the 80th OSS settles in to its new home, it will be the first time in Sheppard's history that all functions concerned with flight operations are all together under one roof. 

Before Monday, these offices were scattered from the south end of the airfield to the north end, said Lt. Col. Joseph Less, commander of the 80th OSS. 

"Airfield Ops and Transient Alert was about a mile to the south, the Radar Approach Control was in a building all the way up on the north end," Colonel Less said. "When the transition to this new place is complete, I'll have all of the people who help me manage and control flight ops all located in the same place. That, in and of itself, is a big improvement." 

At the south end of the complex stands the new control tower. This was the first portion of the facility to become operational. 

State of the art air and ground radios and other communications gear are comfortably arranged in a 'wrap-around' console where controllers can sit or stand. 

"The most advantageous feature of the larger tower is the view," said Master Sgt. Dennis Alvarez, the chief controller of control tower. The new control tower is three stories taller than the old one. 

"The height, coupled with the location of the new facility, allows tower controllers to more clearly view aircraft and vehicles on the airfield," he said. 

That makes flying safer for the 300 plus military sorties and eight commercial flights on and off of Sheppard's runways each day. 

Back on the ground floor of the complex, base weather forecasters and observers will also use some high-tech gear as they look to the skies. One new piece of equipment is "...a new high resolution weather cam mounted on the new control tower, said Master Sgt. Charles Dill, superintendent in the weather flight. "The camera will give us a better view to the West [since] it's hard for us to see in that direction with all the two story buildings & hangers in the way. [It will] keep us from getting surprised by fog, low ceilings and thunderstorms moving in from the west." 

Even with all the new equipment for observers to use, one old-school method still works best - going outside and putting an eye-ball on the skies. According to Sergeant Dill, "...the regs still require us to walk outside twice an hour to make local observations." 

Radar controllers begin controlling aircraft on new radar screens in the RAPCON facility in June of next year. But for now, the facility is not quite ready for power up. 

"Raytheon Corp is currently installing the Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System as part of a joint (Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Defense) program to modernize the ATC system nationwide," said Tom Soderstrom, an air traffic control systems specialist. "This new equipment will function hand in hand with Sheppard's new Digital Airport Surveillance Radar." 

Transient air crews - those stationed at another base, but stop over at Sheppard - will use desktop computers to check local and destination weather conditions, refer to enroute maps and file their flight plans, said Maj. Samuel Martin, project officer for the ribbon cutting. Distinguished visitors who fly in or out of Sheppard may decide to partake of the luxury found in the new VIP lounge, a comfortable spot where even the president of the United States might feel right at home. 

Those who call this new facility home go about their daily duties with added zeal and pride because of the new complex and the good feeling of knowing they are now a part of Sheppard's history.