Town patrol member leaves footprint upon departure

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Matthew Lancaster
  • 51st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea --  Before coming to Osan, people are often told stories about painting the town red at night in the Songtan Entertainment District.

A story that is less often told is that of the group of men and women who strive to keep service members safe and out of trouble during the night hours - a group known as the 51st Security Forces Squadron town patrol.

"Our number one goal is protecting the troops, whether they are Airmen, Soldiers, Marines or Sailors," said Tech. Sgt. Jason Winkle, 51st SFS town patrol NCO in charge. "We always employ force protection tactics to ensure their safety in the environment downtown."

Winkle spent his entire year at Osan with the town patrol team. He enjoyed his time here and the difference he was able to make.

"My favorite part about being at Osan was being able to go out and intertwine with different agencies - bringing everything together as a whole and being part of more than just security forces," Winkle said. "Being able to get base leadership involved with issues and problems to stop the nonsense of what goes on downtown was great, too."

Town patrol members also work alongside Korean National Police to make sure the Korean public is kept safe, as well.

"We ensure the safety of our public and help prevent any kind of international incidents from occurring," Winkle said.

Winkle's tour ended July 1, but more defenders are always ready to step in and uphold the duty of town patrol.