IPR, the team behind the scenes

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Keoni Chavarria
  • 62nd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. --  When a movie is created and becomes a hit, the actors and directors get recognized for their work. However, to make a movie happen, the crew behind the scenes is really what makes it so successful.

The 627th Force Support Squadron Installation Personnel Readiness section is like the behind the scenes team in a movie crew. They are needed to make the base operational and successful but aren't seen all that much.

Here at McChord Field, three people run the shop, and are responsible for 109 different units, which equals to more than 6,000 personnel that they monitor.

The IPR  section creates orders for deployments and hand out and monitor training. They also track personnel in more than 45 locations in 14 countries. Currently, they are monitoring 377 Team McChord members that are currently deployed.

IPR is responsible for having accountability of personnel and ensuring they are getting to the locations needed with all of their gear. If Air Mobility Command informs them of a base wide exercise, they are in charge of ensuring all units are aware of the exercise.

"We work on such a broad spectrum that it is never the same every day," said Master Sgt. Zar Manabat, 627th Force Support Squadron IPR superintendent. "Other than deployment operations, we do accountability for the base, we do exercises, and we do short notice emergency operations such as a broken jet."

Once a unit has been tagged with a deployment, IPR will be the one to make sure that the unit is aware of it.

When personnel have been tasked for a deployment, IPR makes sure they are up to date with the training and makes sure their equipment is ready to go.

While members are deployed, IPR continues to track a personnel's status such as training, or injuries and then coordinate's with the correct agencies on McChord until their deployment is up.

"We receive the Airmen returning from the deployment and continue to monitor them as they process through," said Senior Airman Alexander French, 627th FSS IPR technician. "That is not counting the members we are tracking that are projected to deploy."

IPR is tracking personnel for deployments as far out as May of 2015.

They also work as an Air Force liaison. For instance, on McChord Field, they work with members that have come back from Ebola stricken countries to process them. They monitor the member's status and determine if they need any type of administrative action.

IPR is accountable for deploying while avoiding discrepancies. A discrepancy is anything that will negatively affect a mission, such as being unaware of the right type of training needed for the operation.

The IPR section on McChord Field has not gained any mission impacting discrepancies in more than 20 months which has had a huge impact in earning Team McChord the award of the 2014 AMC's Number One Operations Flight.

IPR controls much of what happens with the Airmen on base and without them, the Airmen would not be able to deploy or train.

"We are the Airmen behind the screen that creates the orders," said Staff Sgt. Mantalley Talley, 627th FSS IPR NCO in charge. "Without the orders and the training, we will not get anywhere."

"We provide the muscle to the fight, anytime, anywhere," said Manabat.