Air Marshals of Afghganistan

The military branch USAF is unique when it comes to job specialty (MOS), force protection back in the old days of guarding an aircraft was different. The Air Police would just issue a rifle to an airman to guard the aircraft or resources. Fast forward to modern day, the ‘Air Police’ name progressed to Security Police and finally ‘Security Forces’. With recent conflicts USAF Security Forces have had to adjust and expand its role in the terrorist war. One of them is the Fly-Away Security Team, also known as ‘FAST’. These hand picked elite USAF Security Forces members are also part of the USAF Phoenix Ravens unit, you can see one of our past stories on the USAF Ravens here.

USAF Fly-Away Security Teams (FAST) are staged out of many undisclosed places in the European and Far West Asian theaters. The FAST team provides security for the aircraft while at a hot (high threat) location. And while in-flight responsible for deterring and neutralizing any threats on board the aircraft. The least known responsibility is to collect intelligences of the air strip and surrounding areas from local resources. The skills required to perform as a FAST operative is wide in range from marksmanships, Foreign Clearance Guide Advisor, SERE to diplomatic relations with host nations.

On the ground, the team is responsible for keeping asylum-seekers at bay and fending off attackers long enough for the pilots to get the turboprop-powered Super Hercules airborne, even if that means the team stays behind.

Their added combat training and firepower — M-4 rifles, compared with the aircrew’s 9 mm handguns — are a comfort “when you’re someplace sketchy,” said Capt. Michael Morrison, Svendsen’s co-pilot. Read the rest of the story here.

My second oldest granddaughter graduates Air Force boot camp this coming Thursday. I am so proud of her. In the last 2 months I’ve found myself reading every little thing about the USAF. I’ve not been one to think gals ought to be in combat but I know with Zero’s new military it’s now possible that I’ll have a precious granddaughter there. Any extra prayers for her appreciated. She’s awesome and I think going to do quite well.

Kudos to the men and women of the USAF Security Forces and their expanded job duties. However, for the author to denigrate the old school Air Police by oversimplifying their duties as “handing them a rifle and telling them to guard a plane” understates what their training and job duties entailed. Personally, I received 8 weeks of Security Police Training at Lackland AFB that included segments on both Security and Law Enforcement that were eventually specialized into two distinct AFSC’s. While working Security I did my share of humping birds, SAT Team leader armed with M-60 machine gun, M-16 and S&W K38, Comm-Plotter (communications net), Armory Supervisor, Nuclear Weapons Storage Alarm Monitor, Pass and Registration Specialist, Law Enforcement Patrolman and Town Patrol Team, Desk Sergeant and Asst. Law Enforcement Flight Chief. I was also trained in Riot Control procedures and US Port of Entry regulations as well as being a member of the Mobility Team, selected Airmen subject to 1 Hr notice of TDY deployment . So you can see that even we “old school” Cops had more to do than “guard a plane” without any training. All of this responsibility was given to me while doing only four years in the war and I was awarded the rank of SSgt E-5 with less than 3 years service. The USAF is a great career for the right people.

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