8th LRS IPE section protects Airmen from potentially life threatening dangers

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Brittany Y. Bateman
  • 8th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
KUNSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea --  Ensuring that every Airman, Soldier and civilian arriving here has serviceable, functional and operational equipment is the mission of Airmen from the 8th Logistics Readiness Squadron individual protective equipment section.

From in- and out-processing to taking inventory, these Airmen defend the Wolf Pack against a mortar or chemical attack.

"Our job is the mission," said Airman 1st Class John Stringer, 8th LRS IPE clerk. "Our primary objective is to ensure all of our personnel, including the mission essential citizens, are equipped with chemical war defense equipment gear to sustain and protect them in an instance of chemical warfare."

Inventorying the assets returned by customers getting ready to have a permanent change of station is another part of their mission. The equipment includes real world chemical war defense equipment, training gear for exercises and the gas masks.

"We also in-process the Patriot Express, the airline carrying people from the United States to Pacific Air Forces, that arrive here weekly," said Senior Airman Alyse Bell, 8th LRS IPE clerk. "IPE is a very busy, detailed job. It requires very conscientious, dedicated and intelligent people to run a functional IPE shop."

There are eight Airmen working in the 8th LRS IPE section.

"After working a 12-hour shift building training and C-1 bags for a 50 or more person patriot flight, the next day we issue everyone their gear and as the last customer walks out the door, we all talk about how well and smooth the briefing went," Bell said. "It feels like victory, like we just did our mission and did it well."

Without providing the necessary chemical war defense equipment, none of Kunsan's forces would be able to enter a potentially hazardous environment due to too the risk to their own lives effectively halting the mission.

"Without the mission, our job would be pointless," Stringer said. "Therefore, it's not how our job affects the mission but how our job and the mission sustain each other."

Their mission is the same no matter where they're stationed. Despite this being a deployed location, they have to prepare for the worst no matter where they are, to include non-deployed environments. At any point in time, a non-deployed setting can change into a deployed one.

"We won't always know where or when our enemies choose to attack us," said Stringer. "We must be ready. With that being said, there are subtle differences in how we operate."

"Since this is a deployed location, we don't deploy other personnel away from here, which is something we'd have to do if we were located in a non-deployable area," Stringer continued. "Also, because we're in a deployed setting, we stay busy with outfitting people with chemical war defense equipment who are frequently coming through our base. There is one mission in particular that pertains to Kunsan, exclusively. We defend the base, accept follow-on forces, and take the fight north!"