COMMENTARY: Readiness vital to success Published Nov. 5, 2009 By Chief Master Sgt. Liz Atisme Command Chief, 419th Fighter Wing HILL AIR FORCE BASE, UTAH -- As we join forces with the rest of Team Hill to test our operational readiness, I encourage you to take a few moments to think about what it all means. Our ability to successfully deploy and employ when called upon contributes to the continued success of the world's premiere Air Force. Unlike 25 years ago, deployments are very common in today's Air Force. Many of you joined our military force after the operations tempo increased, accepting the fact that frequent deployments would be a way of life. Operationally, you must commit yourselves to mastering the skills associated with your assigned specialty and completing upgrade training within the allotted time. You must complete the required deployment and ancillary requirements on time and with zero discrepancies and you must mentor, coach, and develop other Airmen to ensure we have strong leaders with the right skill sets assigned to the right positions, always. But being ready is not just about completing training requirements, like self-aid/buddy care and chemical warfare training. It's also about personal and family readiness. Whether single or married, you must prepare yourself and/or your family for tours away from home. Even though only a select group of Airmen are required to develop a formal Family Care plan, each of you should have family care arrangements that cover long- and short-term situations during your absence. Things like wills, powers of attorney, financial allotments, and automatic bill pay are important to your personal readiness. Your goal should be to posture your family for self-sufficiency during your absence. And your personal/family readiness will ultimately enhance mission readiness. Over the next few days, your readiness will be evaluated with a Phase I deployment and Phase II employment exercise. The days will be long and filled with challenging but realistic scenarios. Stay focused and document areas requiring improvement for lessons learned. Let's make the most of this practice, and remember, as reservists we have fewer than 40 days before we get to showcase our combat readiness during the Operational Readiness Inspection, Oct. 31 to Nov. 8, 2010, and prove to be at the front defending our nation.