Commander’s Direct Line Published June 10, 2008 FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. -- The following is a question to the 92nd Air Refueling Wing Commander submitted by a member of Team Fairchild or the local community: Question: I am a retired U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. with 25-years of active-duty service. I have spent the last five years working as a contractor for the Joint Personnel Recovery Agency, and I'm presently working at building 1255 in the 'survival complex.' I read the last Commander's Direct Line about road construction and the additional time and expense this will cause all personnel working on the survival side of the base. My question: why as a contractor and/or person assigned to the survival side of Fairchild, can't we use Rambo Gate. The answer of force protection doesn't ring true as that gate is more isolated and therefore more securable. It can't be a man power issue as the gate is already manned. It would seem to me that by opening Rambo Gate to those personnel working on the survival side of the base would relieve some of the main gate morning congestion, and reduce individual expenses through fuel savings - not to mention reduce traffic flow through the construction area. Response: "Thank you for voicing your concerns about Rambo Gate. Since the closure we've had several questions regarding road construction near Rambo Gate, which we've tried to answer promptly via the e-Connection, our news service. Although we understand your contention that opening the Rambo Gate to private traffic would relieve congestion at the main gate, our specific gate design/practices, and limited manpower at Rambo gate, is mandated and staffed for inspection of commercial vehicles only, in order to strengthen Fairchild's total force protection posture. Adequately controlling commercial traffic and private traffic through Rambo Gate has been a great concern to leadership in the past. In Jan. 2007, an Air Force Vulnerability Assessment team visited Fairchild and agreed that our concerns were justified. Furthermore, the team determined that the gate should be restricted to commercial traffic only. After serious consideration, Fairchild ratified the restriction in Oct. 2007. We realize this involves extra travel time - and some expense, as well - by those working in the 336th Training Group, and other units south of the runway; however, we believe that by restricting Rambo Gate to commercial traffic, we can best employ the design capabilities of the gate and provide greater search scrutiny to appropriate commercial vehicles, thereby improving force protection efforts. This, then, is the key consideration in our decision to preclude private traffic from Rambo Gate. Thank you for your input and understanding."