An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Big future for 931st Security Forces

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Jason Schaap
  • 931st Air Refueling Group Public Affairs
MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. --  All of Master Sgt. Robert Reader's Airmen are listed on a marker board in his office. If all goes well in the next year, he will need a much bigger marker board.

Sergeant Reader is chief of the 931st Air Refueling Group's Security Forces. Right now, his force is a dozen Airmen strong. But like many other parts of the 931st, Sergeant Reader's team stands on the verge of dramatic growth.

"Officially, we're going to 44 (Airmen)," he said. "We hope to get to that within a year."

The expansion will be a win-win-win situation for the 931st, the 22nd Air Refueling Wing (the 931st's active-duty host unit at McConnell AFB) and the rest of the Air Force, Sergeant Reader said.

More manpower will mean more training opportunities. Not just for the Group's cops, but for other Airmen in the Group who need security instruction.

Team McConnell will benefit when more Reservists are available to backfill the 22nd ARW's frequently-deployed security forces. The Air Force will benefit from three rapid-response teams that should emerge as more personnel are added.

The 13-man teams are already a staple of Air Force success overseas. They are trained to deploy anywhere the Air Force sends them with minimal notice. After receiving orders, "they can be out the door in 72 hours," Sergeant Reader said.

The bigger space needed to accommodate a bigger security mission is already standing by. Sergeant Reader's team is scheduled to move into a building near the headquarters of the 22nd's active-duty security forces.

"You won't see us next UTA," Sergeant Reader said to those in the 931st headquarters building accustomed to seeing his Airmen squeeze into his small office during Unit Training Assemblies.

Sergeant Reader, however, plans to keep his office at the 931st's headquarters for maintaining communication and operations between UTAs. He is the only full-time security forces member of the 931st.

"There's a running joke," said Sergeant Reader, a Philadelphia native, that in the Midwest it is easier to find potential Airmen who want to train with weapons. He has two new Airmen at school right now and little doubt he'll find more to meet his recruiting goal.

The search is Wichita-centered because local recruits are more cost efficient. Research has shown that Reservists who don't live locally typically cost the 931st four times as much as local Airmen. "That (translates to) three people we can't get locally" because a nonlocal Airman was recruited, Sergeant Reader said.

Security Forces is among the hot jobs listed on the home page of the 931st's public web site. Airmen who want to help the 931st grow are encouraged to register at the Get One Now program web site. 


For More Information
Master Sgt. Robert Reader,
931st Security Forces Chief
(316) 759-3168

Tech. Sgt. Jason Sommers,
931st ARG Recruiter
(316) 761-0408

Read More
Click here to see Staff Sgt. Jamel Warren, 931st Security Forces member, in the Spirit Spotlight.