374th LRS keeping Yokota's Airmen deployable

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Lynsie Nichols
  • 374th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan --  Yokota Air Base provides expeditionary forces who are ready to deploy anywhere in the world at a moment's notice. The 374th Logistics Readiness Squadron Individual Protection Equipment section helps enable Yokota warriors to remain mission ready.

The LRS IPE supports service members at Yokota with the tools necessary for mobility on base and abroad.

"Our job is to make sure all military personnel are deployment ready," said Senior Airman Semaj Everette, 374 LRS IPE journeyman. "We supply Yokota with IPE gear and weapons for training and real-world purposes."

Staff Sgt. Angela Holden, 374 LRS IPE supervisor, helps oversee the process.

"I give briefings to military members as they arrive and walk them through the process of getting their gear," she said. "I have them personally try everything on to ensure their gear fits properly."

The 374 LRS manages 26,000 critical supplies and equipment, a task they do not take lightly.

"We inventory all of our supplies because a lot of it has a shelf life," said Tech. Sgt. Jilam Dickson, 374 LRS IPE NCO in charge. "We need to make sure that the deployer is going down range with equipment that isn't about to expire or already expired."

Besides doing inventory on the equipment they issue, IPE also checks the safety and effectiveness of its gear.

"Whenever people return their gear to us, we test the gas masks to ensure they are still serviceable," Dickson said. "If we don't do our job correctly, it could potentially affect someone who is deployed down range."

IPE also issues weapons to deployers, a task that requires a lot of steps.

"We need to inspect the weapons before they are issued to the deployer to ensure they are in working condition," said Staff Sgt. Nancy Caffrey, 374 LRS IPE weapons management. "We also inspect the weapons upon return to ensure they are in the same working condition."

As well as inspecting the weapons, Caffrey also coordinates with the 374th Security Forces Squadron Combat Arms Training and Maintenance flight to schedule deployers to qualify their weapons.

"It is important that the deployer is trained to fire the weapon they are assigned," she said. "CATM is a great way to give them the practice as well as for us to ensure that the weapon is serviceable."

Teamwork plays a very important role in the day-to-day tasks of the 374th LRS IPE crew, a part so important, it does not go unnoticed.

"I am truly blessed and proud to serve with my fellow Airmen and NCOs," Everette said. "I know that I couldn't do my job without them."

Caffrey agreed, "All of us are on the same page, we have a great team. I enjoy working with everyone here and wouldn't change it for the world."