Three days of employers, tours and flights

  • Published
  • By Maj. Shannon Mann
  • 916th Public Affairs Office
SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  Fifty employers from across North Carolina and Virginia had a chance to see first-hand what the Air Force Reserve is all about recently.

The 916th Air Refueling Wing, in conjunction with the North Carolina Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, sponsored one civic leader tour and one local civic leader flight for employers April 19-21, 2012.

The tour took more than 30 employers to Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio where bosses learned about the mission of the 445th Airlift Wing, were able to tour the Air Force's research laboratories, meet Reserve leaders and experience an air-to-air refueling between a KC-135R Stratotanker and  a C-17 Globemaster.

On April 21, nearly 20 employers came to the 916th Air Refueling Wing to take part in a local refueling flight, in addition to hearing speakers from ESGR, the base's military affairs committee and wing leadership. The maintenance group offered an additional treat by conducting a confined space exercise in which employers were able to see what reservists would do in the event of an emergency inside a KC-135 fuel tank.

Employers were impressed with the mission accomplished by so many of their employees and several signed an ESGR Statement of Support during a refueling mission returning to Seymour Johnson on April 20.

The 916th ARW conducts an annual tour in the spring to varying military installations in order to educate employers. Local civic leader flights occur more regularly to help employers and civic leaders understand the mission of the Air Force Reserve.