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CPS facilities house, protect Airmen

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Benjamin Sutton
  • 51st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea --  During readiness exercise Beverly Midnight 16-01, collective protection system facilities are used to house members of Team Osan, as well as follow-on forces.

The CPS facilities provide a safe living and working area in the event of a chemical or biological threat. These facilities are operated by shelter management teams who bear the responsibility of protecting the members sleeping and working inside.

“The CPS facilities protect Airmen as well as provide a place for them to sleep when not on shift,” said Tech. Sgt. Daniel Johnsin, 51st Logistics Readiness Squadron NCO in charge of passenger travel. “It’s very important to have a plan for a work and rest cycle so people can continuously perform the mission across the base.”

The shelter management teams are responsible for checking the integrity of the building and protecting the occupants who are housed inside.

Members of the SMTs train to safely allow access to Airmen coming off shifts and repel any attack that can occur.

“The way the shelter management teams regulate the entering and exiting process works really well and is great training for real-world scenarios,” said Staff Sgt. Emmanuel Oliva, 51st LRS quality assurance inspector.

Prior to entry or ingress into the CPS, personnel must process through a contamination control area, which can be internal or external depending on the facility. When done correctly, SMTs ensure contamination is never brought into the facility.

Before leaving a CPS facility, members don the necessary mission oriented protective posture gear before proceeding through the egress or exit doors. The ingress and egress are usually two separate routes to accommodate for simultaneous entering and exiting of the CPS airlock area.

“People are able to safely come and go as necessary,” said Johnsin. “This allows us to continue the fight 24-hours a day. We have some very real and serious threats here and facilities like this ensure safety for military members.”