Air Force's first joint base flies more with less Published May 8, 2009 By Pacifica Chehy Capital Flyer staff writer ANDREWS AFB, Md. -- A team on the Andrews airfield recently discovered the increase that can happen when the right reductions are made. The 2005 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission recommended that Naval Air Facility Washington be realigned by relocating the installation management functions to the Air Force, thereby establishing Joint Base Andrews-Naval Air Facility Washington. This transfer of power marks the first such reassignment of civilian employees from one military branch to another. "The Naval Air Facility Washington is a separate base surrounded by Andrews," explained Lt. Col. Pete Doty, 316th Operations Support Squadron commander. "With two sides of the airfield, there were some areas which overlapped and were duplicated from one side to the other - some minor in scale, like trash management, and others more substantial, like airfield operations." Each airfield has a four-letter airport identifier, but since Andrews had both an Air Force side and a Navy side of the airfield, the base actually had two identifiers: KADW and KNSF. "There's a legend that says that KNSF actually stands for the 'Navy Side of the Field,'" Colonel Doty joked. The KNSF moniker was deactivated March 29. Though the Air Force is now in command of the entire airfield, it is not inclusive of naval flying operations. Navy flying units stationed at Joint Base Andrews are still overseen by the Navy chain of command through NAF Washington. "There was some trepidation from the folks outside of Andrews and a few infrequent customers who were concerned with the transfer that there would be differences in procedures or in protocol, which isn't the case at all," Colonel Doty explained. "In fact, we're able to provide additional capacity that the Navy side didn't have before, and our Distinguished Visitor lounge is available to them, as well." One of the perks for Navy customers includes 24-hour service, seven days per week, 365 days per year. As for the Air Force, the base has gained more than 20 percent in aircraft parking capacity - a much-appreciated asset, especially for global events such as the G-20 summit, in which the airfield accommodated 26 foreign DV airplanes with 18 heads-of-state. "Another great benefit is that the relationship between the 316th Wing, NAF Washington and the other tenant commands has become much stronger," said Navy Capt. Tim Fox, NAF commander. "Instead of working as independent, stove pipe organizations, we are working better as a team. We only see these relationships improving, leveraging the strengths each brings to the table. One Team, One Fight." Aircraft maintenance is one area which will continue to overlap until the contracts run out. "We'll have two contracts at the same time for transient aircraft maintenance," Colonel Doty said. "Eventually, with rebidding the contacts, we'll be looking at all one area." In all, 17 Team Andrews members will be affected directly by the airfield's joint basing initiative - all civilians from the Navy who will be Air Force civilians. Four have transferred so far and the rest will move by Oct. 1. During the joint basing, there have been some growing pains. "Our biggest challenges have turned into opportunities," Colonel Doty said. "It's finding the Easter eggs - hidden challenges - like learning the Navy lingo. We're learning from each other - it's actually helping us keep us on our toes and get new and fresh ideas." Team Andrews now has 8.8 million square feet of concrete and its associated systems at an airfield that services 26 flying organizations under four military services. Saul Balboa, 316th Airfield Management Flight Operations shift leader and former Navy civilian employee, said there has been one significant difference he has experienced as a result of joint basing. "There's a much higher ops tempo on this side," Mr. Balboa said. "There's a lot more traffic and VIP aircraft that we handle. It's always busy, but it's a good thing. There are a lot of people who are deployed from the office right now, so it's good to be able to step in and help out."