HILL AIR FORCE BASE — Only Hill Air Force Base personnel considered “mission essential” are now to report to the base for work.
In the midst of the growing coronavirus crisis, the decision announced Tuesday night to declare “mission essential reporting” was made to align with precautions taken by the Department of Defense, U.S. Air Force and local government, according to a statement issued Monday evening. Those not deemed essential are not to visit work centers without contacting their supervisor.
“We are doing everything in our power to protect our airmen, our civilian airmen and our government contractors and their families,” Col. Jon Eberlan, 75th Air Base Wing Commander, said in the news release. “This is mine and the senior leadership’s No. 1 priority across the installation.”
During mission essential reporting, officials encourage teleworking to the “maximum extent possible.”
Mission essential personnel are identified by supervisors and commanders. The news release noted that those at Ogden Air Logistics Complex are still deemed mission essential and should still report to work.
Contractors and contractor employees will continue to perform work duties, unless notified by a contracting officer.
Currently, the order does not affect the operating hours of the base’s youth center and child development centers, which will remain open to mission essential personnel.
The commissary, shoppettes, base exchange and pharmacy at the Hill Air Force Base will remain open as well.
Meanwhile, the active duty 388th Fighter Wing and Reserve 419th Fighter Wing are continuing to train and fly the F-35A Lightning II despite the current global coronavirus outbreak, according to Tom Mullican, public affairs director for the 75th Air Base Wing at Hill Air Force Base.
“We’re still doing what we need to do to support the warfighter,” he said. “We’re still maintaining the missions, but we’re doing the best and smartest we can because of the current situation.”
One change has been the implementation of “segmented” flying operations, in which the 421st Fighter Squadron and 4th Fighter Squadron and aircraft maintenance units are rotated on a weekly basis, a news release stated. When not flying, airmen are encouraged to stay at home as much as possible — going out for only essentials such as groceries, medical appointments or physical fitness activities while practicing social distancing.
Mullican said Hill Air Force Base has had confirmed cases of COVID-19, but could not elaborate due to security and privacy protocol. For now, the main objective will be to preserve mission readiness while also upholding health and safety standards for everyone on the base.
“We want to make it as safe as we can. And we’re still following the same recommendations that came out from the (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) with social distancing and everything else,” he said. “We’re still following all those rules, where people come into work and make sure that they’ve got that safe distance. They’re not on top of each other, that they’re staggering their work shifts and everything else as well.”