F.E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. -- Security forces is easily the largest career field in the Air Force, with a wealth of cool pictures out there of defenders posted with their weapons, training military working dogs or defending the base at the front gate. But the part of security forces that people often overlook is the Airmen behind the scenes.
Where do those defenders get their helmets, body armor and gas masks? Well, I recently had the opportunity to hang out at the 90th Security Support Squadron, which ensures that security forces Airmen are equipped with everything they need to get the job done.
“The group’s mission is to provide preeminent combat capability across the spectrum of conflict, so we make sure they can deliver that capability by supplying the equipment,” said Senior Airman Christina Costa, 90th SSPTS supply custodian.
While visiting the squadron, I got an extensive tour of the facility housing all of the equipment for more than 1,200 defenders here at F.E. Warren. I also got the run-down of what a normal day looks like for Airman Costa.
“My days vary, but they can consist of shopping at the base store, getting our inventory up to level and issuing gear to Airmen,” Costa said. “We get a lot of people coming through to turn in gear, exchange and sometimes replace lost or stolen gear.”
Costa is also in charge of making government purchases on behalf of the 90th Security Forces Group.
“We have to plan for the inevitable when it comes to gear replacement, so we project a figure around $360,000 when it comes to ensuring our annual sustainability,” Costa said.
Costa’s supervisor said she has a tremendous work ethic and handles the responsibilities of her job well.
“She’s very knowledgeable and you don’t have to give her much direction,” said Tech. Sgt. Shad Dohl, 90th SSPTS NCO in charge of supply. “She sees a problem and doesn’t hesitate to solve it.”
It’s pretty clear to see that Costa has a lot of Airmen relying on her for supplies to carry out their duties. She said it can be challenging at times, but also very rewarding.
“Knowing that we’re equipping these Airmen to secure our base’s assets and hearing the gratitude from them is worth all of the effort,” Costa said.
So when you see those awesome defenders out there with all their gear doing great things, also remember that there’s an equally awesome defender researching and distributing that equipment.