509th LRS hosts Airmen exchange program

U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Diana Coronell, an Airmen exchange program participant assigned to the 437th Supply Chain Operations Squadron, puts away items in the central storage and issue warehouse at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, May 15, 2018. Material management Airmen visited different sections of the 509th Logistics Readiness Squadron to include the different warehouses and customer support sections to see how they directly interact with customers. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Joel Pfiester)

509th LRS hosts Airmen exchange program

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Hector Reyes, an inspection technician from the 509th Logistics Readiness Squadron, gives a tour of his section to visiting materiel management Airmen at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, May 15, 2018. Airmen from Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, were part of an exchange program giving them insight into what different missions their career field can support. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Joel Pfiester)

509th LRS hosts Airmen exchange program

Published May 31, 2018
By Staff Sgt. Joel Pfiester
509th Bomb Wing Public Affairs

WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. --

Seven materiel management Airmen from Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, visited the 509^th Logistics Readiness Squadron at Whiteman AFB this month as part of a two-day Airman exchange program.

For the past few years, Whiteman’s 509^th LRS and Scott’s 435^th and 437^th Supply Chain Operations Squadrons have participated in this program, where Airman travel to each other’s installations to get a glimpse of different missions their career field supports. Although the host Airmen and visiting Airman share the same Air Force specialty code, 2S0X1, their day-to-day duties are different.

“At Whiteman, the materiel managers oversee a single base-level supply,” said Master Sgt. Martina McLeod, the 437^th SCOS systems flight superintendent. “At Scott, we are responsible for an entire enterprise comprised of 78 host bases and 186 satellite accounts providing 24/7 support to 16,000 customers across 10 major commands, and over 4,000 aircraft across the globe.”

Scott has its own LRS; it is run by civilian contractors, so materiel managers aren’t assigned to that squadron. Instead, they perform their duties in the SCOS, overseeing more of the enterprise as a whole.

“Because the SCOS Airmen work behind the scenes fulfilling requirements worldwide for multiple bases, they may never talk to the customer or see what they are directly supporting. These visits provide them with an inside look at the functions that the base-level LRS supports,” said Master Sgt. Marie Lee, 509^th LRS customer support section chief.

The visiting Airmen spent time at several different sections and warehouses, including the flight line, to see how they directly interact with customers.

“Having the opportunity to see supply functions performed first hand, instead of just reading about them in their career development courses was a valuable experience for our Airmen who have not been anywhere other than Scott AFB,” said McLeod. “In fact, by the end of the trip, many of them were ready to update their base preferences so they could get assigned to an LRS. We appreciate the 509th LRS for giving us the opportunity to visit and allowing the Airmen to learn more about their career field.”